The Los Angeles Chargers entered this offseason with over $100 million in cap space to build a contender around Justin Herbert. Instead, questions are mounting over how that money was actually spent. This week, former Chargers defensive tackle Breiden Fehoko didn’t hold back on the team’s spending decisions under Jim Harbaugh.

“$100 million in cap space. You just absolutely wanna be cheap for the position group that matters the most. So many quality free agents were available to build depth. I don’t feel sorry for this team,” Fehoko wrote on X, in response to Chargers center Tyler Biadasz’s injury and his expected absence.

It has been confirmed by an MRI that he sustained ACL injuries, among other issues in his left knee, and it will take further consultations with experts before the full extent of the injury and his return timeline are known. For now, he’s out indefinitely.

This is certainly not good news after what Biadasz has been signed for. This season, he signed a three-year, $30 million contract with the Chargers after two great seasons with the Washington Commanders, where he rarely missed a start. Before that, he spent four seasons in Dallas as a reliable presence up front and was selected to the Pro Bowl in 2022.

Get The Huddle Newsletter. The day's biggest NFL stories — rivalries, matchups, expert analysis, power rankings, and insider draft news.

Now look at the Chargers depth chart. Jake Slaughter, a second-round rookie this year, along with Josh Kaltenberger and Jacob Spomer, are the names left holding down center. None of them are anywhere close to Biadasz’s experience, and that gap is exactly what Fehoko was pointing at. Slaughter was also supposed to play guard, so if he shifts to center, that spot gets thinner too.

This line was already shaky last year, with Herbert facing pressure on a league-high 43.3% of dropbacks per The Athletic. The fix was bringing in Biadasz and sliding Slaughter to guard, after Rashawn Slater missed the entire 2025 season, and Joe Alt sat out 11 games last year. Injuries up front have become a season-long theme.

Fehoko’s criticism makes sense when you look closely. The Chargers still have about $40 million left unused, among the league’s highest. Biadasz is definitely an upgrade, but he is still the flashiest Chargers signing this offseason. That cannot be sustainable for the team in the long run.

“Once you have the owners who say, ‘No, I want to go for it,’ it becomes really hard for the teams who are passive to win big,” one exec told The Athletic. “If you’re the Chargers or the Bengals and you’re gonna play this thing passive, yeah, you’re going to compete with the Ravens right now and the Broncos right now, but in two years, it’s gonna be a different team that passed you.

General Manager Joe Hortiz should survey the free agent market and get the necessary reinforcement, like Graham Glasgow and James Daniels. Otherwise, he will have to rely on inexperienced talent and hope for the best.

With Super Bowl expectations already attached to this roster, losing your starting center like this stings even more when the excuse of empty pockets simply doesn’t apply here.