Even after sinking to 0-7 on Sunday, the Chargers are stubbornly refusing to sell off their core veterans, placing a hard hands-off tag on Khalil Mack.
Asked head-on about the mounting trade chatter, Jim Harbaugh didn’t mince words about where things stand.
Jim Harbaugh Breaks Silence on Khalil Mack Trade Rumors
“I want Khalil Mack here. Khalil Mack wants to be here. He’s one of the pillars of our team,” Harbaugh said during his media appearance, per Ari Meirov.
It might not exactly be the clear no Joe Hortiz said a while back about trade rumors, but it was enough for everyone to know his take.
Even Mack emphasized focusing on where his feet are.
“You’ve got to be where your feet are, man, ultimately,” Mack said after the Bolts’ seven-straight loss this season, via Eric Williams of Fox Sports. “That can be the most difficult thing when you’re dealing with a lot of outside noise and stuff. Just trying to be where your feet are at all times. That’s kind of been my thing in years past.”
Both Harbaugh and Mack might not want a trade, but the front office might be forced to make one at the end of the day given the desperate 0-7 condition the Chargers are in.
Mike McDaniel’s offense isn’t going anywhere, nor is Justin Herbert. The Herbert trade rumors are already starting to brew in the trade rumor mill.
Mack is already 35 and a 9x Pro Bowler, and looks out of place in a struggling Chargers roster when he simply could be leading a contender, and himself, to a Super Bowl ring.
Yet, the Chargers look pretty set on not hearing out any offers on Mack, or any veteran for that matter.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter confirmed that “The Chargers have given no indication that they’re willing to trade anybody,” on the Pat McAfee Show.
Chargers Trading Khalil Mack Makes Sense
However, Schefter also pointed out that giving Mack a fresh start and getting a draft pick in return just “makes sense.”
“But they keep losing; they haven’t won a game yet. So, at some point, if you’ve got a player like Khalil Mack, if he wants to go somewhere else, and you get a draft pick back, that makes sense.”
On Sunday against the Rams, Mack played a season-low 35 defensive snaps. He wasn’t fully kept on the bench to really start trade speculation, but that limited usage certainly raised eyebrows.
And the play of rookie Akeem Mesidor opposite Tuli Tuipulotu gives the Chargers two young pass rushers to build around. Mack is completely expendable if the Chargers want.
The Chargers can keep rooting for McDaniel’s scheme to work, and Herbert clicking in it, but until they put up any wins, holding onto veterans would simply be of no use.
Keeping veterans like Mack past the deadline yields them a symbolic presence and nothing else. He’s already on a one-year rental, set to hit the free agent market where a team like the Chicago Bears, who really want a reunion with Mack, will get him on their squad. But the Chargers won’t get any real benefit from that, except just some cap space.
If they send him to a contender now, they get draft capital to rebuild a squad and bring in players who actually work.
Chargers’ Jim Harbaugh Drops Telling Statement on Khalil Mack Trade Amid Bears Rumors