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In a matter of days, the Chargers parted ways with wide receivers Mike Williams, who signed with the New York Jets earlier this week, and Keenan Allen, who was traded to the Chicago Bears for a 4th round pick in the upcoming NFL Draft. Allen and Williams combined for 586 receptions, 7,171 yards and 44 touchdowns in the last four seasons, providing Justin Herbert with one of the best receiving duos in the NFL since he was drafted 6th overall by Los Angeles in the 2020 NFL Draft. Given their respective ages — Allen will be 32 by the time the 2024 season starts, and Williams is 29 and returning from a torn ACL he suffered in week 3 last season.
It’s interesting that it was the Los Angeles Chargers and Chicago Bears who came together to make one of the most consequential trades of the NFL’s offseason thus far. On one hand, it makes perfect sense… there’s a new regime in Los Angeles, spearheaded by new head coach Jim Harbaugh and general manager Joe Hortiz, that is compelled to start from scratch after the team practically bottomed out in 2023 under Brandon Staley. Meanwhile, in Chicago, you’ve got general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus in a position where they’re coming into their third season in the Windy City, and the expectation in the Chi is that the Bears should contend right now — you know, that is if Caleb Williams actually is the guy draft analysts say he is.
On the other hand, this is a departure from recent seasons where it was the Chargers who were the team that went all-in with a young quarterback on a rookie deal, trading with Chicago for an aging star (Khalil Mack) who ideally would help elevate the Chargers from pseudo-contender to legitimate contender for a Super Bowl title while Justin Herbert was still cheap. This doesn’t even consider that Keenan Allen, unlike Mack in Chicago, is a lifelong Charger. In fact, Allen was a Charger for four seasons before the team relocated to Los Angeles. But even with a decade in those glorious powder blue uniforms in the books, Allen was ready to move on heading into the 2024 season.
“GM Joe Hortiz said #Chargers offered Keenan Allen multiple contract options, including an extension, before trading him to Bears,” according to Daniel Popper of the The Athletic.
Where do the Chargers go from here?
The new-look Chargers will once again be picking near the top of the draft, and given the departures of Allen and Williams, it’s looking more and more likely that Hortiz and Harbaugh will use the 5th pick to bring a #1 target into the offense for Justin Herbert. With Marvin Harrison Jr. likely off the board by the time the Chargers are on the clock, that leaves LSU’s Malik Nabers or Washington’s Rome Odunze as the primary options. We’ve seen rookie receivers come into the league and dominate right out of the gate, and both Nabers and Odunze have the potential to do so. If they did, they would be following in the footsteps of Keenan Allen, who was the runner-up for Rookie of the Year in 2013 after finishing his debut season with 71 receptions, 1,046 yards and 8 touchdowns. It was the first of six seasons in which Allen has topped the 1,000-yard mark.
