Chargers coach Brandon Staley said it was more coincidence than reactionary when asked about the teams in the AFC West stockpiling on pass rushers to defend the star quarterbacks in the loaded division.

Coincidence or not, the Chargers landed star edge rusher Khalil Mack to chase someone like new Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson. Coincidence or not, the Chargers acquired Pro Bowl cornerback J.C. Jackson to defend against players like new Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams.

It wasn’t counter moves for Staley and the Chargers, but they were likely thankful the biggest pieces to their offseason plan were already in place when the Raiders stunned the NFL landscape by trading multiple draft picks to the Green Bay Packers for Adams.

“I think some of it is coincidence,” Staley said Wednesday, a day before Adams went to Las Vegas. “I really do. A lot of people would be like, ‘Well, it’s a response to all that’s happened with the quarterback stuff.’ I think a lot of it is just coincidence in terms of what the teams have and what they’re trying to acquire.”

AFC West teams had similar plans to acquire pass rushers because they have two games respectively against the Chargers’ Justin Herbert, Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes, Raiders’ Derek Carr and now the Broncos’ Wilson, who was traded by the Seattle Seahawks two days before the Chargers traded for Mack.

Mack is now teamed with Chargers edge rusher Joey Bosa in the first wave of Pro Bowl pass rushers landing in the AFC West. Chandler Jones joins Maxx Crosby with the Raiders, and Randy Gregory made a U-turn from Dallas to partner with Bradley Chubb and the Broncos. The Chiefs already have a great pass-rushing duo with Frank Clark and Chris Jones, two reasons why they keep winning the division.

Counter or coincidence, the splash moves the Chargers, Broncos and Raiders have made this month to keep pace with the Chiefs have turned the AFC West into the glamour division of the NFL.

All four teams seem to be on equal ground, at least on paper. The Chargers aimed to be on the highest level alone, but they accomplished what they wanted most of all after the first week of free agency when general manager Tom Telesco went to Staley’s office and informed him that he’s reuniting with Mack after sending a 2022 second-round pick and a 2023 sixth-rounder to the Chicago Bears.

The blockbuster trade sent a message across the league that the Chargers are serious about winning in 2022 and that could be why Jackson, the prize of free agency, said yes to coming to Los Angeles.

Staley dropped the first hints at the NFL Scouting Combine when he said he’s always going to be looking for corners and that playing heavy-zone defense is a recipe for disaster against elite and mobile quarterbacks. So it shouldn’t be a surprise that the Chargers heavily pursued Jackson, one of the best man coverage corners in the NFL, when the window for negotiating with outside free agents opened Monday.

But with no Mack, perhaps Jackson says no to the Chargers’ five-year, $82.5 million contract. Jackson might have had better offers elsewhere because the salary numbers for a player of that caliber seemed off.

The Chargers aced the first week of free agency, but they still have glaring holes in all three phases of the roster.

They got better up front with the free-agent acquisitions of Sebastian Joseph-Day and Austin Johnson, but those moves might not be significant enough to drastically improve one of the worst run defenses in the NFL last season. Staley admitted that the interior defensive line is lacking depth and hinted more moves could be coming.

The defense has already lost two free agents and more could be headed out. Edge rusher Uchenna Nwosu went to Seattle and defensive tackle Justin Jones is headed to Chicago. Linebacker Kyzir White, nose tackle Linval Joseph and cornerback Chris Harris Jr. could be the next Chargers to leave.

It’s a drastic defensive makeover as Staley seeks players who fit his two-high system. The potential loss of White might hurt as former first-round pick Kenneth Murray hasn’t been the answer at middle linebacker after two shaky seasons. Inside linebackers, however, aren’t a priority in today’s football.

The Chargers’ current biggest needs are on the right side of the offensive line. Right guard Oday Aboushi is a free agent, but the team could be looking to re-sign the 30-year-old Aboushi, who was productive for five games last season before tearing his ACL.

Right tackle Bryan Bulaga was released after two injury-plagued seasons. The Chargers might go the draft route again to find another tackle after Rashawn Slater fell to them last year at No. 13, but they have a few backup plans in place. Storm Norton, who started 15 games at right tackle last season, is returning and 2019 third-round pick Trey Pipkins is another option.

But if the Chargers bring back Aboushi, that could give them a better backup plan with left guard Matt Feiler potentially moving to right tackle and second-year lineman Brenden Jaimes taking one of the starting guard spots.

It’s not the best scenario, but a starting offensive line of Slater, Jaimes, center Corey Linsley, Aboushi and Feiler might be better than having Norton and Michael Schofield starting on the right side again.

The Chargers also have holes on special teams, a unit that hasn’t finished higher than 23rd in DVOA since 2013, according to Football Outsiders. Adding long snapper Josh Harris wasn’t a splash move, but the 10-year Atlanta Falcons was named a first-time Pro Bowler and All-Pro (second-team) last season.

The Chargers are again the trendy pick for sleeper team to make the postseason, which at this point is an annual tradition among the talking heads – the Chargers have missed the postseason three consecutive seasons and have only two playoff appearances during Telesco’s nine seasons as general manager.

But this offseason approach is different for the Chargers because Telesco had never swung that big when he executed the trade for Mack.

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“It was a good deal, but it’s a smart deal,” Staley said. “You’re trading for one of the best players in the game and you know exactly what you’re getting. … We know everything about this guy (Mack). The cost was very minimal for a player for his caliber. I think it was an excellent trade.”

Telesco is known for playing it safe by building through the draft and acquiring veteran players in free agency with team-friendly deals to maintain a healthy salary cap. Telesco has changed some of his ways by being aggressive this offseason, but the shrewd contracts have continued and that has given the team enough cap space to stay busy for the second wave of free agency.