New Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator Chris O’Leary will have a lot asked of him in his first season.
O’Leary is replacing Jesse Minter, who helped lead the Bolts defense to being one of the best in the league. LA’s defense allowed 20 points per game last season, ninth-fewest in the league, with the Bolts having the best scoring defense in the 2024 season, allowing 17.7 PPG.
The Bolts were a bit conservative with their offseason spending to strengthen the roster and appear the team will stick with players from the previous season to continue the low PPG.
One NFL analyst calls a defensive player a breakout candidate who could help Los Angeles.
Bolts Defensive Lineman Named Breakout Candidate
GettyChargers defender named breakout candidate
With the new season in just over two months, the Los Angeles Chargers will see who the main standout is for Chris O’Leary’s defense.
NFL analyst Ben Solak of ESPN named defensive lineman Jamaree Caldwell as a potential breakout candidate for the Chargers ahead of the 2026 season.
“As a third-round rookie, Caldwell almost led the Chargers in snaps along the interior. He had 525 to Teair Tart‘s 526,” Solak wrote. “Caldwell is a particularly exciting part of a deep defensive tackle rotation because he is capable of playing both over the center and over the guard, which gives him good synergy with Tart, who is similarly versatile.
“The Chargers added Dalvin Tomlinson, a quintessential run-stuffing nose tackle, in free agency. It’s easy to infer they’ll give Caldwell a few more pass-rush opportunities besides Tomlinson, and he has the requisite quickness and flexibility to be a quick penetration player who creates cleanup opportunities for other rushers.”
Caldwell featured in all 17 games his rookie season, starting 5, in a defensive interior room with many quality pieces. In his first season in the league, the D-lineman registered 31 tackles, a sack and a forced fumble, primarily as a nose tackle.
Appearing to be significant help in the pass rush as well, Jamaree Caldwell could make waves in his second season. Getting some more experience under his belt could elevate the former third-round selection into a key rotational piece for O’Leary’s defense.
Coaching Staff on Jamaree Caldwell
GettyJim Harbaugh enters his third season as the head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers
Jamaree Caldwell performed well in his rookie year and will likely have an impressive second season if he continues to develop properly.
Head coach Jim Harbaugh praised the defensive interior last season, at times calling him the best pass rusher on the team.
“No one probably affected the quarterback more than Jamaree Caldwell did,” Harbaugh said after Week 2 of the 2025 season, via the Chargers. “First career sack, he affected the quarterback as much or more as anybody else in the D-Line room, and it was a really good game for the all on the D-Line.”
If Chris O’Leary gets the best out of Jamaree Caldwell and gives him quality playing time, the Bolts’ defensive line will be one of the best in the league.
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