San Diego Chargers: The Dwight Lowery bet

Instead of replacing franchise icon Eric Weddle with a recognized talent like Jalen Ramsey, the San Diego Chargers went to the bargain bin, tabbing Dwight Lowery as their expected starting free safety before the draft even began.

Extremely early on in the free agency period, the San Diego Chargers signed former Indianapolis Colts starting safety Dwight Lowery to a three-year deal worth $7.2 million with $1.5 million in guaranteed money. The Chargers will be Lowery’s fifth team since coming into the league in 2008 as a fourth-round pick out of San Jose State, so he’s a known journeyman.

At no point in his career has Lowery looked like “the answer” at the safety position, but even though he’s lacking in physical talent, he provides one trait in spades: the man simply makes plays.

Lowery’s rookie season looked stellar on the stat sheet, because he defended 16 passes and forced five fumbles. Both of those totals would be career-highs, but as an eight-year pro in 2015, Lowery set a personal record with four interceptions. He also had 76 tackles and eight passes defended, and, lately, he’s become something of a tackle-machine. Of course, that’s not always a good thing when a team signed you to play the free safety position.

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There are no similarities between Lowery and Weddle, other than the fact that they are both older players who have been in the league for quite some time. But if you had to give one reason why the Chargers moved so quickly to sign Lowery, out of all the players they could have targeted at free safety, then it would be how active he is when making plays on the ball, either by defending a pass or tackling the ball-carrier.

I have no qualms with the Chargers drafting Joey Bosa with the third overall pick, even though I had Ramsey rated higher as a prospect. Both are remarkable young players, but Bosa has a better chance of making the more profound impact. Beyond the fact that the Chargers defensive linemen sucked in 2015, the truth is that 3-4 DEs are less risky. Additionally, dominance starts up front. And if you want a third reason, just look at Bosa’s run defense and compare it to the “work” the San Diego front three put in on the ground in 2015.

Sep 27, 2015; Nashville, TN, USA; Indianapolis Colts defensive back Dwight Lowery (33) runs out of bounds after an interception during the second half against the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium. The Colts won 35-33. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports /

However, the Chargers purposefully signed Lowery quickly, passed on Ramsey, devalued Weddle, and didn’t bother fortifying the safety position further.

I call the decision to sign Lowery and start him at free safety a “bet”, but it isn’t necessarily a bet in Lowery being “good enough”. He is what he is at this point, and the Chargers paid him marginal starter money. Yes, his signing bonus is spread out evenly with $500,000 of it put on each of the three years of his contract,20.8% of his contract is guaranteed, among the lowest at the position. Additionally, the $2.4 million per year he’s making slots him in the Johnson Bademosi and Michael Griffin range.

Apr 29, 2016; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Chargers first round draft pick Joey Bosa (C) poses for a picture with general manager Tom Telesco head coach Mike McCoy and president of a football operations John Spanos during a press conference at Chargers Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports /

Starting such a cost-effective, journeyman third safety-type is a “bet” on a philosophy, because it doesn’t seem like the Chargers are putting a whole lot on Lowery in terms of expectation. Being a starting safety is no walk in the park, sure, but I’m sure the Chargers understand that Lowery is one of those safe, stopgap-type safeties who has well-known strengths and limitations.

What the Chargers are gambling on, however, is a belief. Whether it’s Jon Pagano’s, Tom Telesco’s, Mike McCoy‘s, or somebody else’s idea is irrelevant, because the Chargers have made the statement that they don’t care as much about the safety position.

Neither Jahleel Addae nor Lowery were rated even average safeties by Pro Football Focus last year, and I doubt you’ll find many fans singing the praises of either player. The Chargers defense was 28th in net yards per pass attempt allowed, 21st in points per game surrendered, and allowed 22 touchdowns to just 11 interceptions. They were 31st in the NFL at defending tight ends, per Football Outsiders, and 25th against passes over the middle.

If you look at the defense they’ve gradually assembled under their current regime, safety is the one position lacking in effort. On the defensive line, the Chargers paid Corey Liuget big money, drafted Bosa high, and signed Brandon Mebane this offseason. At outside linebacker, they have two highly-regarded, underrated players in Melvin Ingram and Jeremiah Attaochu. The inside linebacker position contains more high draft picks in Manti Te’o, Joshua Perry, and natural-born leader Denzel Perryman.

The Chargers clearly value having a stout front seven that can put pressure on the quarterback and defend the run, even if it is at the expense of defending the pass (the Chargers were notably poor against running backs and tight ends in the passing game). That said, you can’t say they’ve neglected the secondary entirely, because the cornerback trio of Jason Verrett, Casey Hayward, and Brandon Flowers could be amazing if the oldest of the three bounces back in 2016.

Nov 29, 2015; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars running back T.J. Yeldon (24) runs as San Diego Chargers inside linebacker Manti Te’o (50) and cornerback Jason Verrett (22) defend in the first quarter at EverBank Field. Mandatory Credit: Logan Bowles-USA TODAY Sports /

Lowery is not a bad player by any means, and the Chargers know that he can bring the ball-hawking ability that they covet. This is a team that has struggled with generating interceptions, and perhaps Lowery’s addition, combined with a better pass defense, can help in that regard.

When Lowery was first signed, some fans seemed annoyed at such a small-time signing, and the clamors for Ramsey were loud. It’s almost paradoxical, but Lowery is a safe player who is being used as a small piece in a larger bet, which is the Chargers construction of their defense. Their starting safeties make less than $5 million per year when combining their salaries, so if the safety position ends up holding this defense back, don’t point the finger directly at them.

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