How the Los Angeles Chargers will move on from Philip Rivers
By Jason Balliet II
It’s official, the Chargers will be “moving on” from Philip Rivers. So, what is the plan moving forward for the Chargers?
Many guesses, many rumors, and many scenarios will pop up over the next few weeks about what the Chargers have planned after moving on from Philip Rivers. Analysts will link every quarterback possible to the team, and fans will speculate on what their franchise’s next move will be.
Let’s talk about what we have heard so far and piece together what the Chargers could want, and could do. First off, what quarterbacks have the Chargers been legitimately interested in over Tom Telesco’s tenure?
In 2015, the Chargers were interested in Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota, with many analysts reporting that the Chargers were attempting to send Rivers and their first-round pick to the Tennessee Titans so that they could have the opportunity to draft Mariota.
This, obviously, was backed up by the talk that Rivers wanted to eventually play football closer to home, and the Titans would’ve been the perfect spot for him to do just that.
In 2017, it was confirmed that the Chargers were very close to pulling the trigger on Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson. It was then rumored that Rivers “disapproved” of taking a quarterback at seven. Whether you buy that or not (I don’t), the team elected go give Rivers another weapon in Clemson wide receiver Mike Williams.
In 2018, Lamar Jackson was often the topic of conversation for Anthony Lynn and Telesco, who both expressed their admiration for the Louisville Heisman winner. The Chargers even asked Jackson if he was willing to play a gadget role for the team, suggesting that they wanted to groom him behind Rivers, but still get him onto the field.
It was reported well after the draft that the Chargers were going to take Jackson with the17th pick. What the Chargers didn’t expect was for one of the top players on their board, Derwin James, to fall into their lap. So, Telesco stalled for another year and opted to take the elite safety.
Now, in 2020, it’s more of the same, with the Chargers eyeing Cam Newton, and that is exactly the point that this is all adding up to. There is a very particular quarterback trait that the Chargers want. Mobility.
Not just the ability to move around in the pocket, but true mobility. They want speed at the quarterback position, they want the defense to worry about 11 players at all times.