Los Angeles Chargers News & Rumors

We heard yesterday that there was “mounting pessimism” surrounding the Melvin Gordon situation, and that it was looking increasingly likely the Chargers running back would miss regular season time. 

Los Angeles’ GM Tom Telesco said recently that he did make Gordon an extension offer and we know the Wisconsin product is seeking top of the running back market money, but we didn’t know the exact details of what either side wanted. Until now. The “talks are $2-$3 million apart in average salary,” reports Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).

Robinson writes that the Chargers are hoping to give him something slightly more than what Devonta Freeman got from the Falcons (five-years, $41.25MM), while Gordon is “aiming closer” to what the Cardinals gave David Johnson (3 yrs, $39 mil). Robinson adds that he thinks “$12 mil per yr w/ incentives would get it done.” Gordon has been a workhorse for the Chargers the past few seasons, but they seem hesitant to commit that much money to him.

Los Angeles has genuine Super Bowl aspirations, and this situation not only threatens the offense but the locker room chemistry as well. Philip Rivers‘ comments yesterday that the team was “deep” at running back caused quite a firestorm online. While it sounds like the two sides aren’t too far apart, neither side seems willing to budge. Now that we’ve defined where each camp stands, it’ll be very interesting to see who blinks first.

Chargers camp is underway, and it doesn’t sound like running back Melvin Gordon is particularly close to coming back. Gordon has said he won’t report until he gets a new deal, and it doesn’t seem like there’s been much progress.

There is now “mounting pessimism” that Gordon “will be reporting anytime soon and his holdout threatens to go into the regular season,” sources told Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Chargers GM Tom Telesco did say a couple of days ago that he offered Gordon a contract extension, but wouldn’t say how much he offered. Whatever Telesco offered he’s apparently set on, as a source told Josina Anderson of ESPN that the Chargers “are not willing to move off a certain number” (Twitter link).

Gordon has said he wants to stay with the team, but both sides don’t look like they’re backing down any time soon. Gordon, a 2015 first-round pick is set to enter the final year of his rookie deal. Gordon has said he’s willing to sit out as long as it takes, but this is the first real news we’ve heard that he’s apparently in danger of missing regular season time.

If Gordon were to miss time, Austin Ekeler and Justin Jackson would be asked to pick up the slack in his place. Gordon had by far the most efficient year of his career last season, averaging 5.1 yards per carry. Gordon is also an asset in the passing game, and is likely looking for one huge payday before he’s deemed over the hill.

Gordon, who will be 27 in April, is apparently looking for something comparable to what Todd Gurley, David Johnson, and Le’Veon Bell have recently gotten on their deals. Another thing to keep an eye on is the fallout from comments Philip Rivers made at training camp today. Gordon apparently objected to Rivers saying the team was “deep” at running back and was happy with the group they had, per Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com.