The Los Angeles Chargers are facing criticism over their offensive line depth following the season-ending knee injury to center Tyler Biadasz, despite the team entering the offseason with significant salary cap space.
Biadasz suffered damage to his ACL and other injuries to his left knee, an ailment that will keep him out indefinitely less than a month before the NFL regular season begins. The offensive line was identified as a key area needing improvement in the offseason. The Chargers had approximately $99 million in cap space to address the unit and protect quarterback Justin Herbert.
Former Chargers defensive tackle Breiden Fehoko, who played for the team for three seasons, expressed his frustration on social media. "100 million in cap space. You just absolutely wanna be cheap for the position group that matters the most," Fehoko wrote on X, formerly Twitter. "So many quality free agents were available to build depth. I don’t feel sorry for this team."
Fehoko also commented on the team's potential replacement at center. "Funniest thing about Jake Slaughter starting now, is they drafted him to play guard and by fate he’s back to Center. Now it’s back to the main issue, no interior depth," he added in a separate post.
General Manager Joe Hortiz's front office philosophy emphasizes building through the draft rather than significant free agency acquisitions. The Chargers' largest offseason contract was Biadasz's three-year, $30 million deal. With Biadasz now sidelined, the team is expected to rely on rookie Jake Slaughter, who played center at Florida but has no guarantee of NFL readiness at the position.
Adding to the concerns, the Chargers are also monitoring left tackle Rashawn Slater, who is experiencing a flare-up in his surgically repaired knee. Both Slater and Joe Alt missed significant time last season, contributing to Herbert facing the highest pressure rate in the league. The team's ability to address these vulnerabilities with their available cap space is now under scrutiny following Biadasz's injury.