With the status of both Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa up in the air for next season and beyond the Los Angeles Chargers must make it a priority to upgrade their pass rush at some point during this offseason.
While Tuli Tuipulotu has brought some youth and energy to the edge rushing room, it is important to pair him with a similarly young player at the position.
Tennessee edge rusher James Pearce Jr. could be exactly what is needed to fill that void.
Going into the season Pearce was receiving draft hype that placed him in the area of a top five pick if not first overall as a player just waiting to break out into a dominant force. While Pearce failed to develop into that type of a prospect as he had a bit of a down year given the expectations, there is still an ultra-talented young player that can be developed into a consistent presence off the edge. With elite first step quickness, excellent bend, and fantastic read for the game, Pearce has all the tools you want in an edge rusher in the modern NFL. Over the past two seasons Pearce has racked up 17 sacks and has been one of the best players on the Vols defense.
If the Chargers were able to retain either Mack and/or Bosa headed into this year along with drafting Pearce, the team could present one of the most versatile and dominant edge rushing groups in the league. Having Pearce learn behind two of the most storied edge defenders in franchise history can only help his development as well which could create tremendous value should he fall to the Chargers later in the first round.