After being released from the Minnesota Vikings, linebacker Eric Kendricks entered NFL free agency looking for his next franchise. Kendricks has found his next team, trading in Minnesota for the bright lights of California.
Kendricks announced on his Instagram that he will be signing with the Los Angeles Chargers. While the financials of the deal have yet to be revealed, Kendricks contract with the Chargers was confirmed by Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.
Eric Kendricks has spent his entire eight-year career with the Vikings, appearing in 117 total games. Kendricks has racked up 919 tackles – 54 for a loss – 15 passes defended, 15 sacks and nine interceptions. Back in 2019, Kendricks was named a Pro Bowler and All-Pro for the first time in his career. The linebacker made 110 tackles, defended 12 passes and forced two fumbles.
While he made 137 tackles this past season, Kendricks is coming off of a bit of a down year. He received just a 61.1 overall grade from Pro Football Focus. As Minnesota looked to gain some extra cap space, they decided to release their long-time linebacker.
The Chargers will now benefit from the release. For all his struggles, Eric Kendricks was still a monster against the run last year, earning a superb 81.1 run defense grade from PFF. Los Angeles could certainly use some help in that regard. Their run defense ranked just 28th in the NFL, allowing 145.8 yards per game.
Kendricks may now be 31-years-old, but he is still a valuable veteran defender. Los Angeles will look to harness his run game strengths as the Chargers look to make a deep postseason run of their own.
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