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Grading the Los Angeles Chargers’ free agency signings

By Steven Haglund

CARSON, CA - DECEMBER 22: Head coach Anthony Lynn of the Los Angeles Chargers on the sidelines in the first half of the game against the Oakland Raidersat Dignity Health Sports Park on December 22, 2019 in Carson, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)
CARSON, CA - DECEMBER 22: Head coach Anthony Lynn of the Los Angeles Chargers on the sidelines in the first half of the game against the Oakland Raidersat Dignity Health Sports Park on December 22, 2019 in Carson, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Chargers
(Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Chargers /

1. Tom Brady goes elsewhere

The Chargers dodged a bullet with this one. Tom Brady is choosing to play the end of his storied career in Tampa Bay with a contract that will give around $30 million a year. While there were many fans pounding the drum for the Chargers to sign the six-time super bowl winner, it just never made sense for the Chargers.

All signs pointed towards the team going younger at the quarterback position after they moved on from the best player in franchise history, Philip Rivers. Moving from Rivers to Brady is the opposite of that.

The fans that wanted Brady thought that him coming to Los Angeles would have elevated the team firmly into the contender status. With a cap hit of $30 million that would have left the team with next to nothing in cap space and the inability to sign Bulaga, Harris Jr, Joseph and potentially one other player.

Some even thought he would come in and take a discount even though there was never any evidence that suggested he would, especially not to play in a state where he would accrue massive amounts of state and income taxes.

Then there’s the actual play on the field. Is going from Rivers to Brady really that much of an upgrade at this point in the 43-year old’s career? That answer is no.

Everybody is saying that Brady protecting the football would be a big upgrade, and that same argument is being applied in Tampa Bay as to why he is going to provide them with their own upgrade at the position over Jameis Winston. The funny thing is, that Brady actually had the exact same overall quarterback rating as Winston, even though Winston threw 30 interceptions.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. pic.twitter.com/q9x2YGOjzD

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) March 17, 2020

Funny how that works out isn’t it? Brady is one of the best players in league history. Had he chosen the Chargers I would have eventually been able to root for the guy but it never made sense for the Chargers, and frankly doesn’t really make sense for the Buccaneers either. Brady has a massive cap hit and is far from his prime. The fact that he chose them over the Chargers is a big blessing here.

Grading the decision: A+

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