National media outlet gives Chargers veteran some new motivation

The Los Angeles Chargers have a new coach, some new offensive line pieces, and plenty of new faces at wide receiver. As for the defense, there's plenty of new blood there as well under head coach Jim Harbaugh . The roster looks a lot different than it did in 2023, and that is not a bad thing.

A clear weakness for the Chargers defense was brought to light by a national media outlet recently, though.

Pro Football Focus ranked every linebacker group in the NFL.

Chargers linebacker group ranked 31st in NFL by PFF

The Chargers look set to start the returning Denzel Perryman , who enjoyed the highest-graded season of his career with the team in 2020 but is coming off the lowest-graded season of his career (56.4) with the Houston Texans in 2023.

Los Angeles will be inexperienced next to Perryman. Either rookie Junior Colson or second-year player Daiyan Henley , who played just 54 snaps as a rookie, will be slated to start. -- PFF

Perryman is a veteran leader. He will lead the group from a mental and preparation standpoint.

That being said, there is no doubt that he has lost a step as he has gotten older. that's to be expected. hopefully, a return to his long-time franchise will help him reach in the fountain of youth a bit in 2024 for LA. Regardless, he's happy to be back to work for the Chargers.

"Different faces in here. Obviously, it's a whole different structure that Coach Harbaugh got going on. I don't know what the structure was last year or previous years before that, but I like the structure he has, the way he goes about directing the team. I love it." -- Perryman via Chargers

Behind him, there's not much experience to discuss. Henley barely saw the field as a rookie in 2023, and Junior Colson is getting his first dose of NFL action.

Colson was a linebacker prospect many got excited about later in the scouting process for 2024 due to his athleticism. He's a good mover, and I won't be shocked if he is a starter for the powder blue this year.

As for Henley, he will have opportunities to prove himself. It's clear that PFF does not share too much faith in him or the older players at LB for Los Angeles. You cannot really blame them there, though.

The ranking is an accurate one, unfortunately, for the Chargers. Their group lacks the upside that others around their league have, but now, they simply have more bulletin board material to motivate them to have a successful season on defense.

Related: Chargers' pick in 2025 mock draft would take Justin Herbert's offense to the next level