This week, the Los Angeles Chargers signed Pro Bowl center Tyler Biadasz to help protect oft-sacked quarterback Justin Herbert, and on Saturday, the Chargers reportedly agreed to terms with an All-Pro who can get after opposing quarterbacks.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Chargers reached a one-year agreement with Khalil Mack to bring him back to Los Angeles for a fifth season. Mack, 35, was set to become an unrestricted free agent next week if he couldn’t come to terms with the Chargers.
Earlier this week, ESPN’s Kris Rhim reported that Mack decided to return for the 2026 NFL season after he “had mulled retirement.” Rhim relayed that the Chargers had “hope” of re-signing Mack, but Mack would “explore all options.”
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport similarly reported that Mack was “a priority” for Los Angeles, which makes sense, given that Mack has been a team captain every year since the Chargers acquired him from the Chicago Bears in March 2022.
Mack is expected to become a Hall of Famer five years after he does decide to retire. The then-Oakland Raiders’ 2014 No. 5 overall pick won the 2016 Defensive Player of the Year. He’s a three-time All-Pro and nine-time Pro Bowler, and he made the NFL’s 2010s All-Decade Team. Mack has blessed three franchises with his excellence: First, the Raiders (2014-17), then the Bears (2018-21), and now the Chargers.
Mack is only two seasons removed from posting 17 sacks in 2023, but his impact on the game has shifted. All the greats adapt as they age, after all. Last season, Mack had 5.5 sacks, his lowest sack total since his rookie season, but, as Rhim pointed out, he became an integral piece to the Chargers’ eighth-ranked rushing defense.
“When healthy, he was still a difference-maker on the Chargers’ defense,” Rhim wrote. “In the four weeks without Mack, L.A. allowed 579 yards rushing, sixth most in the NFL; from when he returned in Week 7 until Week 18 — when most Chargers starters sat out — L.A. allowed the fourth-fewest rushing yards (1,046).”
Mack was limited to 12 games in 2025 because he suffered a dislocated elbow in Week 2 against the Raiders. But it feels safe to assume that will be an outlier, considering he had previously missed only one game in three years with the Chargers. If Mack can stay healthy in 2026, he’ll serve as a leader on a defense transitioning from defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, who departed to become Baltimore’s head coach, into newly hired defensive coordinator Chris O’Leary’s scheme.
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