Los Angeles Chargers say goodbye to Joey Bosa in stunning trade proposal

A year ago, the Los Angeles Chargers sacrificed the offensive side of the football around Justin Herbert in order to keep pass-rushers like Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack on the roster during a stabilizing of the cap outlook.

Fitting for a Jim Harbaugh-led team, of course. But now it’s time for the pendulum to swing back the other way.

With names like San Francisco 49ers wideout Deebo Samuel already on the trade block, Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox has suggested the Chargers offer up Bosa and a fifth-round pick in the deal to get the former All-Pro weapon:

“The Chargers might have a chance to land Samuel by trading pass-rusher Joey Bosa to San Francisco, where he could pair with his brother, Nick Bosa. While many Chargers fans might not love that scenario, it would make some sense for L.A.”

That’s certainly one way to swing things back to help the offense. Bosa is a prime cut candidate, and moving on would produce roughly $25.4 million in free cap space. With Mack headed to free agency, the Chargers would presumably shift the savings to him, letting him pair with the upstart Tuli Tuipulotu.

The problem? For one, teams like the 49ers already understand that Bosa is a likely cut and could hit free agency, where he’d be cheaper. Two, Samuel is flirting with the wrong age bracket, has a big contract and just had only 51 catches last season. The 49ers have shifted resources to other names on the depth chart for a reason.

From a money standpoint, perhaps Samuel is a low-cost, high-upside deal in a move like this. But the Chargers have plenty of ways to free up cap space without taking on such risk – and names like Davante Adams, DK Metcalf and Cooper Kupp keep coming up linked to them, too.

Joey Bosa of the Los Angeles Chargers — Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

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