The Los Angeles Chargers officially have their running back for at least another season.
Even though it seemed like a divorce from Austin Ekeler was inevitable after he requested a trade in the offseason, they’re now ready to run it back for another year, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Schefter reports that the Chargers have even added up to $2 million in incentives to his current deal, and that Ekeler will be a free agent at the end of the season.
Breaking: After an offseason in which he requested to be traded, RB Austin Ekeler is staying with the Chargers and having close to $2M in incentives added to his deal for this season, sources told @AdamSchefter.
Ekeler will be a free agent after this season. pic.twitter.com/ljPRNtF70N
— ESPN (@espn) May 23, 2023
This is massive news for the Chargers, a team desperately carving more balance to their pass-heavy offense, and that struggled when Ekeler wasn’t healthy.
Running backs have become somewhat expendable in today’s game, so to see them value Ekeler so much and even upgrade his current deal speaks volumes of his importance and role for this team.
The Chargers have knocked on the door of Super Bowl contention for the past couple of years, but somewhat questionable coaching and tough luck have prevented them from taking that leap forward.
They’ve put together a championship-caliber team and want to give Justin Herbert as many weapons as they can to keep up with other powerhouses in the AFC, such as the Kansas City Chiefs and Cincinnati Bengals.
Herbert is due to cash in on a huge payday with a contract extension.
Lamar Jackson and Justin Herbert already got their new deals, and Joe Burrow and Herbert are expected to go next, so having Ekeler for another season will most definitely make life easier for him.
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