Community Tailgate: Philip Rivers’ Contract
We’re still several weeks away from the start of battles on the NFL gridiron, but there’s no offseason when it comes to debate amongst fans. Earlier this month, we launched a new series here at PFR that will be known as the Community Tailgate. What’s the Community Tailgate all about? Well, it’s pretty simple. Every weekday, we’ll highlight one of the top stories going on in the NFL. Then, in the comment section below, we want you to weigh in and let us know what you think.
Of course, while the debate may get spirited, we ask that it all stays respectful. If you need a reminder of our rules, please check out our commenting policy. Basically, we ask that you refrain from inappropriate language, personal insults, and attacks. Speaking of commenting: we’ve made it much easier to leave a comment here at Pro Football Rumors. You are no longer required to be a registered user – simply put in your name, email address, and comment and submit.
Today, we’ll be discussing Philip Rivers and his contract status. Monday night, we learned that the Bolts hope to have a new deal in place with their starting quarterback before the start of training camp. It wasn’t long ago that Rivers’ future beyond 2015 was highly in question. In fact, there were rumblings that he would be wearing a different uniform this spring. Outside of perhaps Adrian Peterson, no veteran Pro Bowler was mentioned more as a potential trade candidate in April as Rivers.
Ultimately, Rivers was not dealt for Marcus Mariota or anyone else. The signal caller is set to make a total of $17.42MM in his walk year and the Bolts seem hopeful that they’ll get a new deal done, despite Rivers’ reported reservations about playing in Los Angeles. It’s fair to wonder, however, if the two sides will see eye-to-eye on his value. Rivers started all 16 games for the Chargers last season and threw for 4,286 yards, 31 touchdowns, and 18 interceptions. In 2014, the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranked Rivers as the seventh-best quarterback in the league last season, putting him ahead of Cam Newton, Andrew Luck, and Peyton Manning. Still, Rivers is 33-year-old and it’s fair to wonder if he’ll continue playing at that level.
When all is said and done, do you expect the Chargers and Rivers to reach agreement on a new deal? Let us know what you think in the comments.
Extra Points: Rivers, Mathis, JPP
The Chargers hope that a new long-term deal with Philip Rivers will be in place before training camp, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. It doesn’t sound like there has been much movement on an extension between the two sides to date, though the quarterback has indicated that he would like to finish his career in San Diego.
Rivers, 33, started all 16 games for the Chargers last season, just like he has done in every season since 2006 when he broke in as the starter. The veteran threw for 4,286 yards, 31 touchdowns, and 18 interceptions. The advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranked Rivers as the seventh-best quarterback in the league last season, putting him ahead of Cam Newton, Andrew Luck, and Peyton Manning. Here’s more from around the NFL..
- The Dolphins should sign guard Evan Mathis to cap their big offseason, Greg Cote of the Miami Herald writes. Miami’s most obvious weakness is at offensive guard and Mathis, released by the Eagles earlier this offseason, has been one of the league’s very best for years now. The 33-year-old also has Dolphins bloodlines – his uncle is Bob Baumhower, a five-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle.
- Retired offensive lineman David Diehl says Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul faces “an uphill battle” after having a finger amputated, Christian Red of the Daily News writes. “There’s no denying how important it is for offensive linemen and defensive linemen to be able to punch, to grab and to pull and do all those things,” Diehl said. “(Pierre-Paul) went with amputation because he felt that was a way for him to get back to the football field quicker. He’s passionate about what he wants to do, and he wants to get back.”
- Washington will look at other outside linebackers, but it’s uncertain if they will add anyone before the final cuts after the preseason, John Keim of ESPN.com writes. Meanwhile, Trent Murphy and Preston Smith are duking it out for the starting outside linebacker job opposite of Ryan Kerrigan.
- Now that Demaryius Thomas has signed, Mark Kiszla, Woody Paige and Les Shapiro of the Denver Post (video link) discussed their predictions for what kind of season the Broncos star wide receiver will have.
Extra Points: Rivers, Browner, Brady, Lions
The next year might be a time of major transition for the Chargers, who will be able to break their lease at season’s end and leave San Diego – their home since 1961 – potentially for Carson, Calif. Further, 11-year Charger and six-time Pro Bowl quarterback Philip Rivers is entering the final season of his contract and could conceivably be under center for another organization 12 months from now. Rivers has started every Chargers game since 2006, playoffs included, and been one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks during that span. However, the 33-year-old hasn’t shown much urgency in getting a long-term deal done with the Bolts, writes the San Diego Union-Tribune’s Michael Gehlken. Regardless of what happens with the Chargers, then, Rivers’ days as a San Diego institution may be winding down.
Here’s more from around the NFL:
- Former Seahawks cornerback Brandon Browner said Sunday at Richard Sherman‘s celebrity softball game that he’d like to return to Seattle when his contract is up, per Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times (Twitter link). If Browner was serious, the timing of his comment is odd, as he recently joined the Saints on a three-year deal during free agency. Browner, who spent 2011-13 with the Seahawks, was a member of the Super Bowl-winning Patriots last season.
- It’s been almost a month since Tom Brady‘s Deflategate appeal hearing, yet no ruling has come down. If Brady’s four-game suspension isn’t overturned, it could lead to a lawsuit against the league. However, there may be behind-the-scenes negotiations going on in hopes of preventing that, per Lorenzo Reyes of USA Today. “I do think they’re negotiating,” said Jodi Balsam, who was the league’s counsel for operations and litigation from 1994-2002 and its counsel for football operations from 2002-2007. “They may be back-channel conversations, but what the NFL wants is to get an implicit agreement from Brady’s people that a reduction in the number of suspended games would resolve the issue and put the brakes on any further litigation.”
- The Lions’ offense is getting to work prior to training camp, tweets ESPN’s Michael Rothstein, who deduced from tight end Joseph Fauria‘s Instagram that he and some teammates are gathering in Atlanta to run routes. Quarterback Matthew Stafford said during the spring that members of Detroit’s offense would look to get some pre-camp work in, according to Rothstein (Twitter link), and it appears to be happening.
Chargers GM On Weddle, Rivers, Liuget
Chargers general manager Tom Telesco is a busy man. Having just completed an extension for defensive lineman Corey Liuget, Telesco will now shift his focus to two other key members of the team: safety Eric Weddle and quarterback Philip Rivers.
Weddle skipped the team’s voluntary workouts, and he’s also spoken out against the organization’s handling of negotiations. The 30-year-old is entering the final year of his five-year, $40MM contract. Meanwhile, Rivers is set to be a free agent following the 2015 season, and he’ll be paid $15.75MM in the final year of his contract. The 33-year-old was mentioned in trade rumors throughout the offseason.
Telesco talked with Scott Kaplan and Billy Ray Smith of The Mighty 1090 AM radio late last week, and ESPN.com’s Eric D. Williams transcribed the conversation. We previously passed along some of Telesco’s quotes regarding Weddle, but we’ve compiled some of the other intriguing soundbites below…
On the ongoing negotiations with Weddle, and whether the safety will show up to minicamp next week:
“Each negotiation, each discussion is just different. In his case, he’s up there at the top of the market where he’s paid right now.”
“I expect him to, but we’ll see next week. But I’d expect him to be here. … He’s a pro. He’s a big part of this team. We know everything about him. We’ll know he’ll be ready to go. I’m not worried about that at all.”
On the organization’s discussions with Rivers:
“We still have open lines of communication, but there’s really nothing new to report right now. We’ll continue to hopefully talk and see how it goes.”
“The numbers are pretty big, so the conversations do take some time. But we’ll keep working at it, and we’ll see where it goes.”
On Liuget’s five-year extension:
“It was nice to get him extended. Corey is a very disruptive layer, and he plays a very important position in our defense. The 3-tech defensive tackle makes that whole front go, and he has that type of ability. He turned 25 just a couple months ago. He still has a really high ceiling. There’s still a lot of good football in front of him, and still a lot of skills in front of him. So I don’t even think we’ve seen the finished product yet.”
Poll: Which QB Will Sign Extension Next?
A pair of starting quarterbacks signed long-term extensions with their clubs in recent weeks, as the Dolphins and Panthers locked up Ryan Tannehill and Cam Newton respectively. With Ben Roethlisberger signing a multiyear deal of his own with the Steelers back in March, a few of the signal-callers we expected to see extended this offseason have already taken care of business.
Several more notable quarterbacks are still without new deals though, and are seemingly preparing to enter the final year of their respective contracts without an extension in place. Of course, we still have about three months until the regular season gets underway, so there’s plenty of time between now and then for these QBs to work out agreements with their teams.
Sam Bradford and Nick Foles are among the quarterbacks whose contracts expire after the 2015 season, but neither player is a top-tier NFL starter, and both Bradford and Foles are coming off significant injuries that shortened their 2014 seasons. So while they may sign extensions at some point, we’re not including them in this discussion, since they’re not quite in the same class as a few other contract-year QBs.
We’ll also remove Andrew Luck from this conversation, since the Colts have explicitly stated that they don’t intend to negotiate an extension with the former No. 1 pick until 2016. Like Tannehill, Luck was a first-round pick in 2012, which makes him eligible for an extension now, but since Indianapolis holds a fifth-year option for the ’16 season, there’s no rush for the team to get something done.
That leaves us with three top quarterbacks entering contract years: Russell Wilson, Philip Rivers, and Eli Manning. Like Roethlisberger, Rivers and Manning are each in the final year of a veteran contract. However, Rivers seems somewhat hesitant about re-upping with the Chargers given the uncertain future of the franchise, which resulted in some trade rumors earlier in the offseason. It doesn’t appear that Rivers is going anywhere, but the two sides don’t seem to be close to an extension either, despite some optimism from the Bolts.
As for Manning, we heard earlier this week that contract talks between the two-time Super Bowl MVP and the Giants haven’t begun yet, and he’s not sure when they will. The latest report on the situation suggests that the club may be willing to wait until after the season, with Manning using the 2015 campaign to prove his worth once more.
Wilson, meanwhile, is coming off a rookie contract, which perhaps makes his situation the trickiest of the three. Having built a talented roster around Wilson, the Seahawks are now facing the possibility of their quarterback’s cap hit jumping from the $1MM range to something much, much higher. So far, the two sides are at an impasse, and by all accounts, Wilson is willing to play out the 2015 season and force Seattle to use the franchise tag if he feels like he’s being low-balled by the team in extension discussions.
It’s possible that all three of these quarterbacks will head into the 2015 regular season without having signed new contracts, but I’d be surprised if that were the case. What do you think? Which of these three Pro Bowl quarterbacks will extend his contract with his current team first?
Chargers Not Talking Contract With Weddle
The Chargers have informed Eric Weddle‘s agent David Canter that they won’t be engaging in extension talks this year, according to Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. The veteran safety didn’t report to the team’s OTAs, in the hopes of negotiating a new contract, but it doesn’t appear that will happen.
“He’ll be excited about playing this year and then hit free agency,” Canter said of his client, adding: “We’re disappointed and will continue to be disappointed. But Eric will go balls-out this season.”
Weddle is scheduled to make $7.5MM in base salary in the final year of a five-year, $40MM deal, making him the fourth-highest paid safety in terms of total compensation in 2015. In late April, GM Tom Telesco indicated that, while he was focused on the draft at that point, he eventually wanted to discuss Weddle’s contract, so the new stance is a little surprising. It’s possible that the team will revisit negotiations following the season, before the 30-year-old reaches free agency.
Weddle has been the Chargers’ starting safety since 2008 and he has not missed a regular season start since the 2009 season. In 2014, Weddle racked up 114 total tackles to go along with eight pass deflections and an interception. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) rated the three-time Pro Bowler as the best overall safety in the NFL last season with a +18.9 overall grade.
Here are a couple other notes on Chargers’ extension candidates:
- While they may not be negotiating with Weddle, the Chargers are “quietly working on an extension” for defensive lineman Corey Liuget, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, who tweets that Liuget is a “priority” for the club. The 25-year-old is currently on track to play the 2015 season on his fifth-year option salary of $5.477MM.
- John Clayton of ESPN.com examines the Philip Rivers contract situation, concluding that it’s “highly unlikely” that the quarterback plays for anyone but the Chargers in 2016. If the franchise moves to Los Angeles, however, it may take a little extra money to convince Rivers to re-up.
QB Notes: Tebow, Winston, McCown, Rivers
After being away from the game for the past two years, Eagles quarterback Tim Tebow is thrilled about his new opportunity. The former Heisman winner is behind Sam Bradford, Mark Sanchez and Matt Barkley on the team’s depth chart, but the competition is far from Tebow’s mind.
“I think sometimes when things are taken away, then you don’t realize how much fun it is to come out here and play this game,” Tebow told Nate Davis of USA Today. “You can’t play it forever, so I’m going to enjoy it.”
Coach Chip Kelly had been thrilled with the 27-year-old’s performance in OTAs.
“I think he’s improved,” Kelly said. “He’s had a lot of time the last two years working at his game. (We) wanted to have a fourth quarterback here.”
Let’s check out some more notes regarding some of the league’s signal callers…
- First-overall pick Jameis Winston is impressing the Buccaneers coaching staff during OTAs. “We have to kind of tell him when to leave,” head coach Lovie Smith told ESPN.com’s Pat Yasinskas. “For him, there’s been a lot of individual work, but having a chance this week to go against our best defense and things like that [has been good]. We have a long ways to go. But we like where he is right now.”
- Browns quarterback Josh McCown has been “virtually anointed” the starting gig without a “hint” of competition, opines Tony Grossi of ESPNCleveland.com. While teammates and coaches have supported sophomore Johnny Manziel, Grossi says the former first-rounder is struggling after a rough offseason.
- Meanwhile, McCown says he wouldn’t have even considered visiting other teams (including the Bills and the Bears) if he had been aware of the talent on the Browns offensive line. “After being with them, 5-6 weeks, it’s like, had I known it was this good I wouldn’t even needed to take a visit (to Buffalo and Chicago),” McCown told Grossi.
- Considering Ben Roethlisberger‘s recent extension, Jason Fitzgerald (writing for the Sporting News) believes Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers‘ next contract could surpass the total of Aaron Rodgers‘ extension. Rivers has previously been paid more than Roethlisberger, who came close to topping Rodgers’ contract’s average annual value.
West Notes: Broncos, Bennett, Rivers
The Broncos will have to make a call this week on whether or not they want to keep Antonio Smith on their roster as their organized team activities get underway, writes Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk. Smith is being investigated following a complaint of possible child abuse of a sexual nature, and while that’s a serious allegation, the defensive lineman has yet to be arrested or charged with a crime, so Denver’s decision isn’t as clear-cut as the one the Bears faced with Ray McDonald.
As we wait to see whether or not the Broncos decide to cut ties with Smith, let’s round up a few more notes out of the NFL’s two West divisions….
- Russell Wilson, Jimmy Graham, and Cliff Avril won’t report immediately to the Seahawks‘ OTAs as they deal with various personal and family matters, according to Danny Neil of 710 ESPN Radio in Seattle (Twitter links). The more notable absence for Seattle is defensive end Michael Bennett, writes NFL.com’s Kevin Patra, citing ESPN Radio. The standout pass rusher suggested earlier this offseason that he wouldn’t mind reworking his contract, which he just signed a year ago.
- Philip Rivers is in action for the Chargers as they begin their OTAs, but there hasn’t been much contract-related discussion between the two sides this month, tweets Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune.
- Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf recently reiterated that she opposes the idea of spending any public funds on a new football stadium in the city, as Rachel Swan of SFGate.com details. For a new stadium to work for the Raiders in Oakland, a gap of about $400MM in financing would have to be closed somehow.
Chargers Optimistic About Rivers Extension
The Chargers are optimistic about working out a long-term extension with Philip Rivers, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Weeks ago, the quarterback was uncertain about his future in San Diego, so this is a positive turn for both parties. There’s still work to be done between Rivers and the Bolts, Rapoport adds (on Twitter), but the team believes that they can work out a deal that would ensure that the QB retires with them.
Throughout the offseason, speculation was rampant that the Bolts could move on from their longtime franchise quarterback. In the weeks leading up to the draft, there was talk that San Diego could build a package centered around Rivers and the No. 17 selection to deal for the Titans’ No. 2 overall pick and take Marcus Mariota. Of course, that never came together.
Rivers, 33, started all 16 games for the Chargers last season, just like he has done in every season since 2006 when he broke in as the starter. The veteran threw for 4,286 yards, 31 touchdowns, and 18 interceptions. The advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranked Rivers as the seventh-best quarterback in the league last season, putting him ahead of Cam Newton, Andrew Luck, and Peyton Manning.
Back in April, Rivers rebuffed the Chargers’ attempts to hold contract extension talks. Rivers is scheduled to earn a total of $17.42MM in 2015, his final year under contract. Tight end Antonio Gates, tight end Ladarius Green, wide receiver Malcom Floyd and guard Johnnie Troutman are also entering their walk years and, along with Rivers, they represent the only holdovers from when GM Tom Telesco and coach Mike McCoy first arrived in 2013.
West Rumors: Rivers, Floyd, Cards, Rams
While Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers isn’t going to be traded, all signs so far have pointed to him playing out the 2015 season without a new contract in place. Still, as Rivers said on Friday, according to Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune, that remains a fluid situation.
“A lot of moving parts and lots to think about,” Rivers said. “Location, family, team … All I can say at this point regarding an extension is I’m willing to listen to anything. I’m also willing to play it out. I’m just fired up to be the Chargers QB in 2015.”
While we wait to see if the Chargers and Rivers move forward with extension discussions, let’s round up a few more items from around the NFL’s two West divisions….
- According to Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic (via Twitter), the Cardinals are willing to listen to trade inquiries on wide receiver Michael Floyd, but no one has expressed interest so far. I imagine most teams are open to listening to calls about most players, but the fact that this tidbit is out there without Floyd having generated any interest suggests that the team is very open to the idea. Arizona picked up Floyd’s fifth-year option this week.
- The Cardinals tried to move up ahead of the Steelers in the first round last night, in the hopes of landing Bud Dupree, tweets Mike Jurecki of Fox Sports 910. Of course, Arizona didn’t end up completing a trade, and Pittsburgh selected the Kentucky pass rusher.
- There’s “absolutely nothing” going on between the Rams and free agent guard Justin Blalock at this point, per Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter). After not picking an offensive lineman in round one, the Rams will almost certainly have to address their line at some point today or tomorrow.