The Los Angeles Chargers were viewed as Super Bowl contenders heading into 2019. They ended up winning five games. That’s one heck of a wake-up call.

The Chargers had a lot of problems this season, whether it was Philip Rivers’ decline, Melvin Gordon’s holdout, midseason coaching changes or rumors that the team could be headed to London. It all added up to one of the most disappointing campaigns in the NFL, and now, Los Angeles must seriously ponder its future and whether or not it can bounce back in 2020.

Here are three key needs for the Bolts this offseason:

3. Offensive line help

To be fair, the Chargers were missing two key offensive linemen for much of the year, as Mike Pouncey was knocked out after five games and Russell Okung did not take the field until Week 8. But Los Angeles’ offensive line has been an issue for several years now, so even with Pouncey and Okung in the fold, this unit is still a problem.

The Chargers’ lack of protection up front resulted in Rivers being pressured quite a bit, and it also led to a rather anemic ground game in which Gordon led the club with just 612 rushing yards.

This is something the Bolts have consistently failed to address, and if they want things to turn around next season, they will have to start looking for solutions this offseason.

2. More pass rushers

Los Angeles has one of the best pass-rushing tandems in the NFL in Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram, and yet, somehow, LA totaled just 30 sacks in 2019, which ranked 28th in the league. Bosa totaled 11.5 sacks and Ingram finished with nine, but the next-best pass was cornerback Desmond King, who logged 2.5 sacks on the year.

When one of your cornerbacks finishes in the top three in sacks on your team, you know you have a problem. Part of the Chargers’ issues with the pass rush is that they don’t get much pressure from their interior, as their defensive tackles combined for just three sacks on the season. Jerry Tillery had a bust of a rookie year, and Brandon Mebane has never been known for his pass-rushing prowess.

Los Angeles needs more than just Bosa and Ingram.

1. A successor to Philip Rivers

Rivers is a free agent this offseason, and there are legitimate questions as to whether or not the Chargers will bring him back. The problem is that if LA elects to let him walk, it doesn’t really have a successor in place.

Right now, the primary option would be Easton Stick, the Bolts’ fifth-round pick from last spring, and I’m not sure the Chargers view him as the solution going forward.

Los Angeles does own the sixth overall pick in the draft, so it could certainly take a quarterback in April, but there are no sure things, and it would probably be nice to keep Rivers around to at least mentor a potential rookie signal-caller.

Regardless of whether or not LA re-signs Rivers, he is 38 years old and is clearly on the decline, so it needs to make a move for its future. That means finding Rivers’ replacement as soon as possible.