The Chargers signed Troy Dye, a linebacker and special teams player with the Minnesota Vikings for the past four seasons, to a one-year contract Friday, according to the NFL Network. Dye could challenge for a prominent role after several others departed earlier this week.
Dye, a Norco native, has a connection with Chargers special teams coordinator Ryan Ficken, who held the same job with the Vikings after Minnesota drafted Dye in the fourth round in 2020. Dye also was teammates with Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert at the University of Oregon.
The Chargers must fill a void at the inside linebacker position after Kenneth Murray Jr. signed a two-year contract with the Tennessee Titans and his backup this past season, Amen Ogbongbemiga, signed with the Chicago Bears. The Chargers also released linebacker Eric Kendricks, a salary cap casualty.
Nick Niemann and Daiyan Henley were the only regulars at the inside linebacker position remaining on the roster after the departures of Murray, Ogbongbemiga and Kendricks. Niemann was a backup to Kendricks and Henley played mostly on special teams during his rookie season.
Dye, 27, has played 60 games in the NFL, all with the Vikings, starting eight. His brothers, Tony and Travis, played at UCLA and USC, respectively. Tony appeared in one game as a defensive back while with the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2013 season. Travis was a running back with the Trojans in 2022.
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