The Los Angeles Chargers are signing former Tennessee Titans cornerback Kristian Fulton to a one-year deal, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL media.
Fulton was considered one of the better cornerbacks available on the free-agent market this offseason, so the fact that he remained unsigned so long was somewhat surprising.
There may have been a gap between what Fulton felt he was worth and what other teams actually wanted to pay him, which is why he may have had to settle for a one-year contract.
Fulton is coming off of a 2023 campaign in which he played 12 games and logged 46 tackles and five passes defended.
The 25-year-old, who played his collegiate football at LSU, was selected by the Titans in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft.
Injuries limited him to just six contests during his rookie year, and during that time, he posted 16 tackles, a sack and an interception. He returned to play 13 games in his sophomore season, finishing with 40 tackles, a couple of picks and 14 passes defended.
Then, in 2022, Fulton participated in only 11 games, registering 48 tackles, an interception, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and five passes defended.
Staying on the field has obviously been a significant issue for Fulton throughout his career, which may have played a rather significant role in the hesitancy of teams to hand him a multi-year pact.
Fulton likely still has to prove that he can remain healthy over the course of a full season before he is able to land a big contract. Maybe he’ll do that with the Chargers in 2024.
Los Angeles’ pass defense ranked just 30th in the NFL this past year, so it definitely needed to address its secondary. Bringing in Fulton will certainly help, so long as Fulton avoids injury.
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