Chargers may have no choice but to pursue league-altering trade

The Los Angeles Chargers are now at a point where they may have to swing a blockbuster trade to save their 2025 NFL season before it starts.

Dec 8, 2024; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf (14) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

It doesn't look like the Los Angeles Chargers are going to be landing Tee Higgins this offseason, as the Cincinnati Bengals seem primed to slap a franchise tag on him.

Higgins was widely viewed as the Chargers' top target heading into free agency, as Los Angeles desperately needs to address its ailing receiving corps. But now, that dream appears dead, meaning the Chargers must turn to Plan B.

Sure, Los Angeles can pursue Chris Godwin, but considering that Godwin is older than Higgins and is coming off of a major injury, that seems like a rather significant downgrade overall.

What the Chargers may have no choice but to do is explore a blockbuster trade that could potentially alter the state of the NFL.

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Who would be the target? Well, it would be a wide receiver, but which wide receiver would actually be the guy is the question. It could be D.K. Metcalf. It could be George Pickens. It could be Deebo Samuel. It could be any Pro Bowl-caliber receiver (although Samuel may no longer fit that profile).

The point is that Los Angeles will need to get creative, as there is absolutely no way the Chargers can enter 2025 with Ladd McConkey representing the only proven option at the position.

Yes, that means the Bolts can't just draft a receiver for Justin Herbert and call it a day. They need to bring in an established star if they truly want to take the next step next fall.

Metcalf seems like the most logical candidate and has been linked to LA multiple times throughout the early stages of the offseason, but whether or not the Seattle Seahawks would actually pull the trigger on a Metcalf trade remains to be seen.

One way or another, the Chargers know they have to do something. They can't let their cap space go to waste. Not after Herbert's nightmarish playoff performance against the Houston Texans, which certainly had something to do with the fact that his arsenal of playmakers was very thin.

It may be time for Los Angeles to pull off a trade that will rock the NFL landscape.

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