Los Angeles Chargers should strongly consider a trade for one of these running backs

Travis Wakeman

Los Angeles Chargers should strongly consider a trade for one of these running backs image

The Los Angeles Chargers are watching their impressive 3-0 start to the season go down the drain following back-to-back losses. The team will look to rebound in Week 6 against the Miami Dolphins, but injuries are mounting. 

The Chargers have already lost starting left tackle Rashawn Slater and running back Najee Harris to season-ending injuries. Key players Joe Alt, Khalil Mack and Omarion Hampton are also out of action and likely to miss several more games each. 

One of the big areas of need for the team is at running back. We all know how much Jim Harbaugh likes to run the ball and a strong running game is important in order to take pressure off quarterback Justin Herbert. But without Harris or Hampton, that could be an issue. 

The Chargers will look to get something going in the running game with Hassan Haskins and Kimani Vidal. Both Amar Johnson and Nyheim Hines-Miller should be ready to be called up off the practice squad at any time as well. But there are options around the league that Harbaugh and general manager Joe Hortiz should be looking into. 

Los Angeles Chargers should trade for one of these running backs

Jaylen Wright, Miami Dolphins

This is a trade that was proposed not too long ago, and it makes even more sense now. 

Jaylen Wright is in his second year with the Dolphins but he is clearly behind both De'Von Achane and Ollie Gordon on the depth chart. Despite being the team's third-string running back, he has yet to carry the ball once this season after getting 68 carries as a rookie. 

There may be something the Dolphins just don't like too much about Wright. It could be his work ethic or it could be that he's not a good fit for their system. It could be several things, but it wouldn't hurt to ask what they might take for him. 

At only 22 years old, his potential upside is worth a shot. 

Devin Singletary, New York Giants

It's looking like Tyrone Tracy Jr. will return to the lineup in Week 6 for the Giants. Having him back along with the way rookie Cam Skattebo is playing, there won't be much room for Devin Singletary to get any work at all.

Singletary has over 4,500 career rushing yards and 24 touchdowns on the ground. If the Chargers need a spark until Hampton can return to the lineup, he could provide it. 

Raheim Sanders, Cleveland Browns 

This move would leave the Chargers with a bit of egg on their face, but it's an idea. 

The team had Raheim Sanders on the roster this summer after signing him as an undrafted free agent out of South Carolina. Despite an impressive preseason, the team chose to cut him when setting its initial 53-man roster and rather than signing him back to the practice squad, he was claimed on waivers by the Browns. 

The Chargers have three running backs ahead of him on the depth chart — Quinshon Judkins, Jerome Ford and Dylan Sampson — so the team has room to move him. Getting a draft pick for any player you grabbed off waivers is a win and the Browns have been trade-happy as of late. 

Alvin Kamara, New Orleans Saints

By far the biggest and most exciting name on this list, trading for Alvin Kamara is not as far-fetched as one might think. The Saints are struggling and will likely finish with one of the worst records in the league this season and Kamara is playing in the final year of his contract. 

READ: Keenan Allen makes NFL history in Week 5

Being able to save money against their salary cap for next season and get a fourth-round pick, as suggested here, in exchange for Kamara, could be quite enticing for the Saints' front office. 

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Travis Wakeman

Travis Wakeman has been covering the NFL since 2012 when he started with Bleacher Report. After reporting about the Broncos there until 2016, he joined the FanSided network as a site expert covering the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers while simultaneously covering the Broncos at Broncos Wire when that site launched. He then took over the Broncos site at FanSided in March 2020 and covered the team there until spring of 2024. A lifelong Broncos fan and fan of the game, Travis is filled with sometimes useless NFL knowledge, but it always serves him well in any trivia contest. You can follow him on Twitter/X @traviswakeman10.