Most Bolt fans were disappointed yesterday as the Los Angeles Chargers were silent at the NFL Trade Deadline, but they did make one significant move. They may not have added any high-end talent to the roster via trade, but they did release one.
Chargers Release Former 3rd-Round Pick
Tre’ McKitty was a former 3rd-round pick who was drafted primarily for his blocking ability. Unfortunately, that blocking prowess did not seem to translate over to the NFL as he struggled mightily in that regard.
So far this season, PFF gave McKitty a 30.4 overall blocking grade, with a 57.2 pass-blocking grade and a 39.1 run-blocking grade. When the skillset that got you drafted in the league ends up becoming a liability, transactions like this are bound to happen.
Overall this season, the Chargers have not been a strong running team and a good amount of the struggles can be attributed to poor blocking from the tight end position.
The Chargers did announce this morning that Nick Vannett was signed to the active roster.
Not that PFF grades are the end all be all, but in 2022, Vannett finished with an overall blocking grade of 44.3. His 2021 grade was substantially higher at 57.9.
We will see a huge improvement based on releasing McKitty and promoting Vannett? Time will tell, but it can’t get much worse, so it’s good to see the organization being somewhat proactive.
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