Sep 9, 2010; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Chargers chief executive officer Dean Spanos during an interview and photo session in his office at Chargers Park. Mandatory Credit: Robert Benson-US PRESSWIRE
The business side of the NFL and our Bolts is rude and crude! We as fans want to keep certain players no matter what. In reality that can’t happen. As much as I wanted to keep VJax and Tolbert this season, Sproles last season or even Osgood a few years back, it didn’t happen and for good reason.
I’ll start with Osgood, he left for Jacksonville, why? Is it because AJ doesn’t know what he’s doing and didn’t like him? No, fact is he was offered more money to stay and be a special teams ace but, he wanted to be a wideout. Both sides paid dearly for that, we lost a stud and beloved SDSU alumni. Our special teams was the worst in the league. Osgood wasn’t able to perform as he wanted to as a wideout and is now waiting to be signed somewhere else.
Sproles, now that one is different. We wanted to keep him, but not for 7 million. I personally don’t believe he was worth the money he got the season before on the Franchise Tag. I don’t believe a 3rd down back and kick returner is worth 7 million. Besides the fact N.O. snapped him up with in 2 days after the lockout (tampering? Maybe!) Yes he is an explosive player, but you can’t build a team around him. He is just a small cog in a big motor.
VJax is kind of the same story, just a little different. His off the field issues were a major factor of him not getting a contract 3-4 years ago. I mean really 2 DUIs, driving on suspended license and (the one I hated most) showing up late to the 2009 Jets playoff game. Then he holds out, even after seeing that it didn’t work for Gates. If he would have signed the tender in 2010 he’d still be here with a fat wallet and awesome QB. He was offered just a little less to stay this season than what he got in Tampa but, I don’t think that would’ve been the right move. We were able to fill a lot of holes with that money, and after his blunder against Oakland in November I don’t think he wanted to stay with us. I hope it works out for him but, I remember another #83 that left for more money and did him no good. (JJ would be in the HoF had he stayed).
Now for Tolbert. He was offered more money to stay here but he wanted to be closer to home and his family. None of us can blame him for that, I wish I could have stayed in SD close to my family, but it wasn’t logical for my wife and I to stay there. Will moving on hurt either side, probably… but we wont know until next year at the earliest.
Most everyone blames (in our case AJ and Spanos) the owners and GMs for players leaving, yes sometimes that’s the case, others it’s not. Football IS a business first. We as fans usually don’t understand how that aspect of it works, we think having 1 player will get us a championship, when getting 3 players for the price of 1 will help the team as a whole and possibly get us 3 or 4 championships.
Thanks for reading, let me know what your opinion is! BoltUp
Biggsybolt