The Los Angeles Chargers are loaded with cap space heading into the NFL offseason, so they are hoping to make some significant moves in free agency.
One of the Chargers’ top targets on the open market was surely going to be Kansas City Chiefs guard Trey Smith, who was set to be one of the top offensive linemen available and would have plugged a pretty big hole for Los Angeles in the trenches.
Unfortunately, the Chargers won’t be getting a chance to add him.
The Chiefs are planning to slap a franchise tag on Smith, removing him from the free-agent market, via Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
Kansas City can still trade Smith, but the chances of the Chiefs actually sending Smith to an AFC West division rival are essentially zero.
Smith has spent the first four seasons of his career in Kansas City and made his first Pro Bowl appearance this past year, so he was certainly going to be on the Chargers’ radar.
But now, Los Angeles must look elsewhere for offensive line help, and the problem is that there aren’t a whole lot of impressive offensive linemen hitting free agency.
The Chargers can always turn to the NFL Draft to try and rectify their problem areas on the interior, but they probably aren’t using a first-round pick on a guard, which further complicates their pursuit of help in that category in the coming months.
Los Angeles does have other positions of need, as well, but Smith now being unavailable is definitely a bummer for Jim Harbaugh and Justin Herbert.
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