Chargers, Benjamin agree to extension

The Los Angeles Chargers and wide receiver Travis Benjamin reportedly came to terms on a one-year contract extension through 2020 on Tuesday.

According to ESPN’s Field Yates, the deal includes a $5.5 million signing bonus and will drop Benjamin’s 2019 base salary from $5.25 million to $1 million. The move will open $2.75 million in salary cap space.

The 29-year-old Benjamin is set to enter his fourth season with the Chargers after a four-year stint with the Cleveland Browns to begin his career.

In his last season with the Browns in 2015, Benjamin hit career highs with 68 receptions for 966 yards and five touchdowns. Although he has not reached those numbers since, he was still productive in his first two years with the Bolts. Benjamin registered 47 grabs for 677 yards and four touchdowns in 2016 and followed that with 34 catches for 567 yards and four scores in 2017. Benjamin’s numbers dropped off significantly last season, however.

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The door is open for Benjamin to bounce back in 2019, since Tyrell Williams signed with the Oakland Raiders. Per ESPN’s Eric Williams, Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn believes Benjamin is among those who need to fill the void

Although Mike Williams will likely slide into a full-time starting role across from Allen, the door is open for Benjamin to reclaim his spot as quarterback Philip Rivers’ preferred deep target.

Tyrell Williams had usurped Benjamin in that regard, but Benjamin previously had strong chemistry with Rivers on downfield plays, as he averaged nearly 17 yards per catch in 2017. With Benjamin locked in for another season beyond 2019, the Chargers can focus on other positions in the draft, as they have a strong receiving corps that should once again allow them to boast one of the NFL’s most explosive offenses.

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