Chargers star has strong reaction to losing key player in free agency

The Los Angeles Chargers lost one of their top defensive players to free agency, as defensive tackle Poona Ford agreed to a three-year, $29.6 million deal with the Los Angeles Rams on Monday.

Ford had a breakout campaign of sorts with the Chargers in 2024, registering 39 tackles, three sacks and five passes defended while posting a sparkling 85.1 overall grade at Pro Football Focus.

But even with Los Angeles having massive cap room, it opted to let him walk, and safety Derwin James had a rather strong reaction to Ford's departure, taking to his X account to post "go ball out fam Earned!!"

Ford is definitely replaceable, but the Chargers haven't exactly gotten off to a hot start in free agency in spite of having tons of money available. So perhaps Los Angeles is going to wait until the NFL Draft to find another interior defender.

James' reaction to the news shows just how much of an impact Ford made on the Bolts, who finished with the NFL's 11th-ranked defense this past season. It wasn't an incredibly elite unit, but it was still very good, and much of that was thanks to the team's front seven.

Ford spent the first five years of his NFL career with the Seattle Seahawks, with his best campaign coming in 2021 when he recorded 53 tackles and a couple of sacks.

The 29-year-old then joined the Buffalo Bills for one season in 2023 and had a very limited role before linking up with the Chargers last year.