Chargers release OLB Joey Bosa after nine-year run

Joey Bosa is a free agent after he was released by the Los Angeles Chargers on Wednesday -- a transaction that will save the team $25.36 million against the salary cap.

The 29-year-old outside linebacker is coming off the fifth Pro Bowl season of his nine-year career, all spent with the Chargers. He would have been due a $12.36 million bonus if he remained on the team's roster on March 12.

Bosa racked up 72 sacks for the Chargers, the second-best total in franchise history. Leslie O'Neal, who played for the club from 1986-95, had 105.5 sacks.

The then-San Diego Chargers drafted Bosa out of Ohio State with the third overall pick in the 2016 draft, and he was an immediate star. He was chosen the NFL's Defensive Rookie of the Year after registering 10.5 sacks, 41 tackles and a forced fumble in 12 games (11 starts) that year.

In 107 NFL games (93 starts), Bosa has 343 tackles, 17 forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries.

However, his availability has been spotty due to injuries. Bosa played a combined 14 games in 2022 and 2023, then just 14 (with nine starts) last year, when he notched five sacks and two forced fumbles.

--Field Level Media