One of the first orders of business for new Los Angeles Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz was getting the team’s miserable salary cap situation in order, and unfortunately, that meant trading wide receiver Keenan Allen.

The Chargers dealt Allen to the Chicago Bears for a fourth-round draft pick last week, ending the wide out’s 11-year run with the franchise.

Hortiz said that while the trade was difficult to make, it was something that had to be done and that Los Angeles will be able to recover from it.

“Yeah, I knew who I was trading,” Hortiz said, via Eric Smith of the Chargers’ official team website. “He’s a very talented player, and I respect him as a player, as a person. It’s difficult when you have to cut a player, trade a player, release a player. It’s always difficult for a player like him certainly, but it creates an opportunity for other players to step up. Again, we’re not done building that room out so we’re going to look to continue to add pieces to that room.”

Allen, who played his collegiate football at the University of California, was selected by the Bolts in the third round of the 2014 NFL Draft back when the team was still in San Diego.

During his time with the Chargers, Allen made six trips to the Pro Bowl and registered six 1,000-yard campaigns, most recently achieving both feats this past season when he hauled in 108 receptions—a career high—for 1,243 yards and seven touchdowns.

That made it even more painful to move Allen.

“I think when you’re talking about trading Keenan specifically, yeah that’s not a decision you make with no acknowledgment of, ‘This is a talented player that can still compete,’” Hortiz said.

The Chargers also released wide out Mike Williams, who had comprised an impressive duo with Keenan Allen since 2017.

We’ll see how Los Angeles manages heading into 2024.

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