Charger Report

Fan favorite trade target suddenly available on waivers, will the Chargers claim him?

Thomas Martinez|
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Los Angeles Chargers

The Los Angeles Chargers are currently on their bye week before they return for Thanksgiving week and a showdown against their division rivals, the Las Vegas Raiders.

Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz has been active in his first two seasons at the head of Los Angeles' front office. Hortiz mentioned during his introductory press conference following his hiring that he will always be searching for ways to improve the roster, specifically churning over the bottom of the roster.

"You do it through free agency. You do it pre-draft, post-draft in free agency. You do those summer signings, the cap casualties," Hortiz said, "We're always going to be looking to make this team better."

The Chargers, while rookie Omarion Hampton is on injured reserve, have Kimani Vidal as the only running back signed to the active roster.

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Texans waive running back Dameon Pierce

The Houston Texans made the puzzling decision to waive their former fourth-round selection running back Dameon Pierce. Pierce had a phenomenal rookie season where he rushed for 939 yards and 4 touchdowns. Pierce thrived his rookie season under then-Texans offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton's power run scheme.

Pierce has never regained his rookie form after the Texans switched a more west coast outside zone running scheme under offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik in 2023 and 2024. It has been clear that Pierce was no longer in favor or a fit in Houston and it was a shock that he wasn't moved before the season or the trade deadline.

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Pierce has long been on the radar of Chargers fans and content creators as a possible trade target due to an anticipated better fit in Greg Roman's offense paired with Pierce's contributions on special teams as a kick returner the past 3 seasons.

Pierce will be subjected to the NFL waiver wire as all players are following the trade deadline. It is currently unknown what the demand for Pierce will be on the waiver wire given he was not traded prior to the trade deadline.

The current draft order dictates the waiver wire priority order, Los Angeles currently sits at 22nd. Teams in contention with running back needs but with higher priority than the Chargers include Los Angeles' rival, the Kansas City Chiefs.

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Thomas Martinez
THOMAS MARTINEZ

Thomas Martinez has covered the Chargers and the NFL draft since 2022. Born and raised as a Chargers fan, experienced the improbable Super Bowl run in the 94’ season as a child, survived Ryan Leaf, the Marlon McCree fumble and Nate Kaeding in the playoffs. He graduated from UC Riverside with a degree in Political Science and The University of Redlands with an MBA.

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