Chargers' Hunter Henry: Expected to be retained

Henry is considered the Chargers' top priority in free agency this offseason, Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com reports.

Retaining Henry has seemingly been the Chargers' main concern since the end of the season, to the point where it seems like a foregone conclusion the team would ultimately place a franchise tag on its star tight end should it ultimately fail to lock him in on a long-term deal. The 25-year-old has been a weapon when on the field, but missing 22 games over the past four seasons could hurt his market value. The Chargers certainly aren't hurting for cap space -- particularly after it was announced that long-time franchise icon Philip Rivers would not return to the team for a 17th professional season -- but a new signal-caller will inevitably eat into that cap figure this offseason. The Chargers have until noon ET on March 16 to offer the fourth-year tight end the franchise tag.