LOS ANGELES _ The Chargers officially moved to keep Hunter Henry by placing a franchise tag on the veteran tight end, the team announced Friday.
The decision ties Henry to the team for the 2020 season, at a salary of about $11 million. The sides are expected to continue negotiations on a long-term contract. The NFL's franchise tag deadline is Monday.
The Chargers also released linebacker Thomas Davis Sr. and nose tackle Brandon Mebane, and agreed to terms to restructure the contract of linebacker Denzel Perryman. His 2020 pay was going to be $6 million, but reportedly the new deal includes incentives.
"This is a difficult time of the year due to the tough decisions we are forced to make concerning the direction of our football team in 2020 and beyond," general manager Tom Telesco said in a statement. "Oftentimes, these decisions hurt on a personal level. This is certainly one of those times."
Henry, 25, is coming off his most productive season. He caught 55 passes for 652 yards and five touchdowns, missing four games because of a tibial plateau fracture in his left knee. In three seasons _ he sat out all but one game in 2018 because of a torn ACL _ Henry has scored 17 touchdowns.
The Chargers most recently used the franchise tag in 2017, when defensive end Melvin Ingram was tagged before agreeing to a four-year extension worth up to $66 million.
Mebane signed with the Chargers in 2016 as an unrestricted free agent and was voted a captain by his teammates for each of his four seasons. He is one of three nose tackles in NFL history with an interception and at least 450 career tackles.
Davis was also voted a captain by his teammates in his only season with the Chargers. He totaled 112 tackles (65 solo) last season, his highest total since 123 (85 solo) with Carolina in the 2013 season.
Perryman played in 14 games last season and started 10, finishing with 68 tackles (50 solo), an interception and a forced fumble. He's missed games in all five seasons with the Chargers, playing in 14 in 2015, 12 in 2016, seven in 2017 and nine in 2018.
