Los Angeles Chargers Release Multiple Key Players On Eve Of NFL Free Agency
The Los Angeles Chargers didn’t waste any time sending a message this offseason. On Wednesday, the team cut Offensive Lineman Mekhi Becton, Tight End Will Dissly, and waived Offensive Lineman Savion Washington. These moves freed up roughly $14.5 million in cap space and made one thing crystal clear: the Chargers are coming to play in free agency.
This wasn’t exactly a surprise. None of it was. But that doesn’t make it any less significant. These aren’t quiet, under-the-radar moves. These are the kinds of calculated decisions that signal a front office that knows exactly what it needs.
The Chargers Cut Mekhi Becton
Let’s start with the big one. Becton was signed to a two-year, $20 million deal before the 2025 season. The idea was simple: give Justin Herbert a nastier, more physical presence on the offensive line and watch the offense take a step forward. What actually happened was not that.
Becton graded out 79th out of 81 guards at Pro Football Focus when he was actually healthy enough to be on the field. That’s not a typo. 79th out of 81. For a guy making $10 million per year, that’s the kind of performance that makes front offices quietly update their spreadsheets at midnight and start making phone calls.
But the performance wasn’t even the most memorable part of Becton’s one season in LA. He went public with complaints about his usage and his fit within the offense. There’s a time-honored tradition in the NFL where a player struggling on the field might grumble behind closed doors. Becton skipped those doors entirely and aired it out for everyone to hear.
By cutting him, the Chargers save $9.7 million in cap space. That money is now available to find someone who actually wants to be there. Funny how that works.
Will Dissly and the Chargers’ Long, Painful Search for a Tight End
Dissly is a good football player. He blocks well, runs decent routes, and shows up in the red zone when defenses aren’t paying attention. He’s also the latest in a genuinely baffling string of tight end misses for the Chargers.
Before Dissly, the team brought in Tyler Conklin. Before that, there were others. None of them stuck. None of them became the reliable, game-changing presence the team clearly craves.
Dissly totaled 63 catches for 594 yards and 2 touchdowns over two seasons with the Chargers. The truth is, the Chargers need more at the tight end position, and Dissly’s cap number made the decision easier than it might have been otherwise.
The good news? Young receiver Oronde Gadsden showed real flashes last season. The bad news? He can’t do everything alone. Expect the Chargers to make tight end a genuine priority when the free agency frenzy kicks off.
The Chargers’ Biggest Offseason Problem: Fixing That Offensive Line
Herbert is one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. He’s also been hit far too many times, pressured far too often, and sacked far too easily. The low point came in the AFC Wild Card loss to the New England Patriots, where Herbert was sacked six times in a game that ended the Chargers’ season.
The math right now is daunting. Becton is gone. Center Bradley Bozeman retired. Guard Zion Johnson is a free agent and likely too expensive to bring back. That leaves the Chargers needing to find three new starting interior linemen before the 2026 season kicks off.
The Chargers have the cap space to make it happen. They entered Wednesday with roughly $84.4 million available, and that number just grew by another $14.5 million. But finding three quality starters on the interior offensive line in a single offseason requires everything to go right. The scouting, the negotiations, the fits, the health.
The Chargers Are Serious About Competing — These Moves Prove It
There’s something oddly refreshing about a team that looks at its own roster with clear eyes and makes hard calls. The Chargers could have kept Becton around, hoping he’d bounce back. They could have paid Dissly to return out of familiarity. They didn’t. They looked at the cap numbers, weighed the production, and chose the future over the comfortable.
That’s what championship-caliber organizations do. Whether the Chargers can turn this decisive offseason housecleaning into a legitimate Super Bowl run remains to be seen. But for now, they’ve done the right things, cleared the right space, and set themselves up to make a real splash.
