LA Chargers Urged to Call Green Bay Packers for Trade Candidates

The Los Angeles Chargers have roster spots to fill this offseason. General manager Joe Hortiz has been active on trade market to fill in roster needs over his first two seasons at the helm.

The Chargers do have significant cap space heading into the off-season. Much of that available space will need to be allocated to internal free agents and filling roster spots. They currently have 26 internal free agents on top of several likely cut candidates.

The Chargers have very little draft capital in the 2026 draft with only five picks following trades that landed Odafe Oweh and Elijah Molden on the Chargers over the past two seasons. Hortiz would need to get creative to make any potential trades work. The lack of draft capital doesn't exclude trades from the off-season possibilities, it simply limits the options and lowers the overall probability of a trade taking place.

Alex Ballentine of Bleacher Report put together a list of potential trade targets for all 32 teams. He lists two Green Bay Packers as potential trade targets for the Chargers.

Elgton Jenkins

It is no secret the Chargers offensive line was in shambles all of 2025. Every time the Chargers played in prime time, the national audience was reminded of the extreme limitations the unit were dealt with. Green Bay Packers interior offensive lineman Elgton Jenkins, if available, would make a lot of sense for the Chargers in search of a guard and center upgrade.

Jenkins has played both guard and center for the Packers and a contract dispute arose prior to the 2025 season regarding the full-time switch to center. Jenkins eventually reported for mandatory camp without a reworked contract.

The contract Jenkins is currently playing under makes him a likely cut candidate unless he gets a new deal this offseason. He currently has a cap hit in Green Bay of over $24 million, his contract will need attention no matter what. Green Bay would save over $19 million towards the cap if they were to cut or trade him.

For the Chargers, the cost in terms of trade capital would not be significant given Jenkins' contract. They would obviously want to rework the deal as well, but have the room to maneuver if they chose to move forward.

Rashan Gary

Former Michigan Wolverine, Rashan Gary started the 2025 season hot playing opposite Micah Parsons. His production appeared directly tied to Parsons' presence on the defense. After Parsons went down with injury so did Hary's production.

The Packers and Rashan Gary signed a new deal in 2023 and his contract in 2026 and 2027 is reflective of a top edge rusher. Unfortunately, Gary may not be living up to the inflated numbers remaining on his contract, therefore giving the Packers reason to consider moving on from him.

The Packers would eat a massive chunk of dead cap if they were to cut or trade Gary with a pre-June 1st designation but would save substantial cap space with a post-June 1st designation.

If the Chargers miss out on re-signing Odafe Oweh, finding a way to bring in Gary, who has already played for Jim Harbaugh at Michigan, would make sense if the trade compensation was reasonable. The Chargers defense thrives on three edge rusher looks and Gary could easily fill a role if the Chargers needed it.

Will the Chargers and Packers strike a deal?

The Chargers do not have much draft capital. The two Green Bay Packers highlighted are potential cut candidates and theoretically the return of capital in terms of a trade should not be significant. The likelihood that these would realistically get done are low, but creative solutions have been found before.

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