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New Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz speaks during a news conference at the NFL combine. (Michael Conroy / Associated Press)
The Chargers have 20 unrestricted free agents, including eight who started or played key reserve roles last year.
Center Corey Linsley is expected to retire because of a heart-related ailment.
They have four other accomplished veterans — receivers Keenan Allen and Mike Williams and edge rushers Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack — whose futures with the team are clouded by salary-cap issues.
General manager Joe Hortiz, speaking at the NFL scouting combine on Tuesday, was asked repeated questions about a roster that could be facing some robust rebuilding.
He insisted he likes all the players who ended the season with the Chargers, a sentiment echoed by coach Jim Harbaugh. Hortiz’s background in scouting lends itself to working with what’s available.
Read more: Chargers roster needs: Who might they target in free agency and the draft?
“I think you find a role for them,” he said. “That’s what we do in scouting. We find the things they can do for the team. We do it in coaching. What can they do well for us? I don’t think you eliminate any player. It’s more how they fit the team.”
The Chargers already have undergone significant alteration since their last game. Hortiz and Harbaugh were hired and the coaching staff was overhauled and expanded.
The new leadership is looking to bolster an ineffective running game and construct a tougher, more physical team. Harbaugh has talked about identifying players who will play hard and as one.
Having spent more than a quarter-century with Baltimore, Hortiz said finding the pieces will be a wide-net proposition for the Chargers’ front office, bringing an approach similar to the one employed by the Ravens.
“You can find success everywhere with players — waiver claims, signing them off of a practice squad, the eight-year pro who’s coming in to give you the last couple of years he’s got,” Hortiz…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/chargers-gm-joe-hortiz-says-222455081.html
Author : LA Times
Publish date : 2024-02-27 22:24:55
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