The Los Angeles Chargers won 11 games in 2024 and had a great start to the Jim Harbaugh era. How much cap space will they have in 2025? Going from five wins to 11 was a great turnaround for the Chargers. The team was circling mediocrity for years, but it finally seems like they have something going in the right direction.
However, when many thought they would beat the Houston Texans in the Wild Card Round, the total opposite happened. Houston blew LA out and actually did leave the Chargers with some unexpected questions to answer in 2025. In two career playoff games, QB Justin Herbert has looked... bad.
While he can put up some shiny regular season stats, the playoff success just isn't there, and it's worth wondering if the playoffs are too big for Herbert right now. Anyway, LA is approaching an interesting offseason where they have to try and maket the next step.
One way they can do that is via free agency.
How much cap space do the LA Chargers have?
According to Over The Cap, the LA Chargers will have around $63 million in available cap for 2025. That would be one of the highest amounts in the AFC, so if we're being honest, they really don't have to do much. They could look to trade/cut some veteran players to free up even more cap, but that might not be necessary.
The oft-injured Joey Bosa might be someone who gets the axe this coming offseason. The Chargers could save $25 million and take on $11 million in dead cap with a post-June 1st release. That could be their most notable move.
Even without the move, LA could pursue a free agent like Tee Higgins, who would be the perfect wide receiver to pair next to the stud rookie Ladd McConkey, who had over 1,000 yards in his first year in the NFL.
Another position where LA may look to add in free agency is their interior offensive line. The tackle duo of Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt is among the best in the NFL, and with Alt on his rookie deal, it would make a load of sense to pursue a big-name free agent along the offensive interior.
Being that head coach Jim Harbaugh and GM Joe Hortiz are approaching their second offseason together, they may still want to aggressively build through the NFL Draft, so I am not sure a major player trade would be on the table. But overall, the Chargers are in a good spot with their cap space and resources for 2025.