LA Chargers biggest needs for 2025 and 1 free agent, 1 draft target to address them

Los Angeles Chargers owner Dean Spanos ran out of patience with Brandon Staley last season after the Chargers finished 5-12, despite being a playoff team the year before.

Many fans and media around the country dinged Spanos with the "cheap" nickname because he was never known for going after the big-name, expensive coaches. He flipped the narrative in the off-season by going all out for and landing Jim Harbaugh after he won the national championship at Michigan. Harbaugh earned himself a $16 million deal, ranking him as the fourth highest-paid head coach behind Andy Reid ($20 million per year), Sean Payton ($18 million per year) and Mike Tomlin who he is tied with at $16 million per year.

Harbaugh executed a complete 180-degree flip with this Chargers team. After finishing 5-12 the year before, the Chargers exceeded 10 wins and a playoff spot under Harbaugh.

Harbaugh brought with him Jesse Minter; Michigan's defensive coordinator who now calls the defense for Los Angeles. Minter has led this Chargers defense to an elite 2024, so far giving up the least points in the NFL.

Harbaugh also brought with him Ben Herbert, who many Bolt fans consider an unsung hero. Herbert was the strength and conditioning coach with the Wolverines and now does essentially the same with the Chargers. He helped bring a sense of toughness, discipline and grit into the program that the Chargers certainly lacked beforehand.

The Chargers have a lot to look forward to going forward, along with a lot of cap space to address more needs. Los Angeles is set to have roughly $74 million in cap going into the off-season, which ranks eighth highest in the NFL. Considering how well Harbaugh coached this team with many holes in its roster, that is reason for Chargers fans to be excited. They can get even better.

3 Chargers at risk of departing and the replacement plans in 2025

Departing Charger: OLB Khalil Mack

Khalil Mack signed a one-year, $19,200,000 deal last off-season with a $17 million signing bonus. The Chargers do have the cap space to bring back Mack if they so choose, but he will be 34 years old going into next season so it is fair to assume the Chargers may move on. Mack took a pay cut to stick around in Los Angeles, presumably because of the Harbaugh signing.

Potential free-agency replacement: Edge Josh Sweat

In 2021, Josh Sweat signed a three-year, $40 million deal with the Philadelphia Eagles. Sweat logged a whopping 11 sacks in 2022, but has seen lower numbers since then. He finished at 8 sacks in 2024, which is still formidable. On paper, this would replace Mack's production from 2024 and at a potentially cheaper price. Mack's influence in the run game is much more impactful than Sweat's, but Mack only has 6 sacks. Sweat's current contract is actually $6 million cheaper, and one would expect his market to be somewhere in that realm this summer which the Chargers can afford.

Departing Charger: WR Josh Palmer

Josh Palmer was the No. 77th overall pick, taken in the third round in the 2021 NFL draft. Coming out of Tennessee, he showed the tools of a potentially productive NFL wide receiver. He was quite raw as a prospect with things that needed to be polished up but turned out to be quite productive for a third-round pick. Palmer came to the team as no more than a third option with Keenan Allen and Mike Williams in front of him on the depth chart. However, he still managed to put up 769 yards receiving as the third option in 2022 when the Chargers made the playoffs.

Palmer's contract situation is simple, his rookie deal is about to expire. Palmer had 584 yards in 2024 with one touchdown in a run-centric Greg Roman offense for the Chargers. Palmer is not the long-term answer at franchise wide receiver for Los Angeles and with the rise of Ladd McConkey it is expected for the Chargers to let Palmer walk into free agency.

Potential 2025 NFL Draft replacement: WR Luther Burden III

Wide receiver Luther Burden III out of the Missouri Tigers has had first-round projections for over a calendar year now. Burden logged 1,212 yards and 9 touchdowns in 2023 en route to an 11-2 season for the Tigers. Missouri also won the Cotton Bowl against Ohio State that year by a score of 14-3.

Burden's 2024 season was not nearly as electric but he still put up great tape. Burden tallied 676 yards and 6 touchdowns in 2024, much less than the season prior. However, Missouri as a team also took a step back. The Chargers will likely hold a pick in the early-20's and it is to be determined where Burden's projection is yet with the pre-draft process still looming. The Chargers should certainly add a weapon like Burden to Justin Herbert's disposal in the first round.

Departing Charger: TE Hayden Hurst

Hayden Hurst signed a one-year, $1.25 million dollar deal in 2024. The original plan seemed to be to pair him back with offensive coordinator Greg Roman, who helped him produce one of the best seasons of his career back when they were paired together in Baltimore. Hurst was expected to be the primary pass-catching tight end but with injuries and the emergence of Will Dissly it did not turn out that way.

Dissly, despite being signed as primarily a blocking tight end, played himself into a key pass-catching role in 2024. Nonetheless, the Chargers have a glaring need at tight end going forward along with wide receiver. There are some really exciting tight ends coming out for the 2025 NFL draft that Los Angeles could take a deep look at.

Potential 2025 NFL Draft replacement: TE Colston Loveland

With the pre-draft process still looming, it is still up in the air where some of the tight ends such as Colston Loveland will be projected. The media would tell you right now Loveland and someone like Tyler Warren from Penn State may turn out to be first-round tight ends.

Luther Burden should be first round target for the Chargers earlier but it is very possible that he is gone by pick 20. In that case, the Chargers could give Loveland a look.

This is a match made in heaven for the whole system. Greg Roman's offense favors the tight end position, as we have seen from Dissly's surprise performance this season. Roman's offense has also included big seasons from guys like Vernon Davis in San Francisco and Mark Andrews in Baltimore. Harbaugh and general manager Joe Hortiz have also shown they're not afraid to draft some of Harbaugh's former Michigan players, such as linebacker Junior Colson in 2024.

This Chargers offense still has room to improve but with the weapons coming out in the draft such as Loveland and holding $74 million in cap space this summer, Los Angeles could drastically improve this roster into a Super Bowl contender if the front office executes.