The end of an era for the longest-serving player and one of the franchise’s all-time greats, Joey Bosa, came last week with the club’s decision to part ways with the outside linebacker.
This move will clear out cap space worth $25.36 million. Drafted third overall by the Chargers in 2016, Bosa, now age 29, is second in franchise history with 72 career sacks, behind only Leslie O’Neal at 105.5.
Bosa burst onto the scene in 2016 with 10.5 sacks and 17 tackles for loss, earning NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year honors. He quickly cemented his stature among the top edge rushers in the league and received Pro Bowl nominations in four of his first six seasons, including an impressive 19 sacks in his first 20 games, an NFL record.
In 2020, the Chargers made Bosa the highest-paid defensive player in NFL history, signing him to a five-year, $135 million deal. Injuries limited Bosa to 28 games in the subsequent three seasons. With that said, he returned to play in the 2024 Pro Bowl, as an alternate and played in 14 games for the highest amount of games since 2021.
When healthy, he remained an effective pass rusher, leading the Chargers in pressure with six and recording one sack in a playoff loss against the Houston Texans this past January.
During the season, Bosa made it clear he wanted to be a Charger for life, even taking a pay cut last offseason to try to facilitate that stay. However, with a steep cap hit of $36.4 million projected in 2025, the Chargers found themselves with no choice due to Bosa’s release, ridding almost $90.6 million in cap space.
Bosa’s remarks about potentially joining his younger brother Nick, the five-time Pro Bowler edge rusher for the San Francisco 49ers, suggest that this might be the first time in his career he will be a free agent.