It was impossible not to love Austin Ekeler as an L.A. Chargers fan. Shoot, it was impossible not to love the guy if you were an honest Kansas City Chiefs fan. He was an even more special player in his prime years, but he'll always be seen as one of the best dual-threats of his era.
That's why it was tough for fans to see the Chargers do what they did at the tail end of his stint in L.A. Recently, Ekeler opened up about how his time in Los Angeles ended and it's an even worse look for the organization after hearing his sentiments.
"I'm coming off my second year of leading the league in touchdowns ... I'm going to the Chargers like, 'Hey, let's get an extension, strike while the iron is hot,'" Ekeler said on a recent podcast episode.
Austin Ekeler wanted to be in Los Angeles, but the Chargers stuck to their guns and made life difficult
"I had one more year left on my contract ... they say 'no.'
"I'm like, 'OK let me go find a trade.' They're like, 'OK great, but we want a first-round pick for you.' I'm like, 'oh, so you don't want to pay me but you want a first-round pick,'" he explained.
This is essentially what every Chargers fan was thinking when they heard that news. The Chargers didn't want to pay Ekeler to stick around, but they also wanted a first-round pick in a trade. There's no way any team would have paid that type of price.
In a roundabout way, the Chargers were basically saying they wanted to make his life miserable for no reason, keep him around for one more year and then kick him to the curb. They knew no team was going to pay a first rounder in exchange for a 27-year-old running back, regardless of whether he led the league in scrimmage touchdowns two years running.
This is pretty disheartening for fans who loved Ekeler (which was pretty much the entirety of the fan base).
Hopefully, Joe Hortiz learned from the previous front office and doesn't make similar mistakes with fan favorites going forward.