The San Diego Chargers considered a Philip Rivers trade at the draft this year, but things never got close to happening and now the quarterback could be open to listening to a contract extension offer from SD and this comes after the team drafted Melvin Gordon in the first round and as the Chargers have Eric Weddle hoping for a new deal while holding out from offseason workouts.
The Rivers trade talk spiked just before the draft, as reports had the team interested in moving up to take Marcus Mariota. Obviously that did not end up happening, as the Titans took Mariota number two overall, but there were persistent rumors that the Chargers were interested. Now that things have settled down, the Union-Tribune San Diego reports that Rivers would be "willing to listen" to extension offers from the Chargers. Eric Weddle has been away from offseason workouts and he reportedly wants a new contract before reporting.
Rivers is coming into the final year of his contract and this offseason there were multiple reports that Rivers was not interested in signing a deal as he did not want to move to Los Angeles if the team moved in the future. The fact that Rivers was coming into the final year of his contract added to the speculation about Mariota and the team also worked out the prospect before the draft, which only fanned the flames. Rivers maintained that he was happy in San Diego and that he was comfortable playing out the final year of his contract.
Rivers to the Titans was rumored about for a while, as he had a connection to head coach Ken Whisenhunt, but after the draft news came out that the deal was nowhere close to happening. Now Rivers could be in line for a contract extension and if he is uneasy about moving to LA, it could be a short-term extension compared to what other QBs in his situation have done. Rivers had another strong season in 2014 and he has proven to be one of the most consistent quarterbacks in the NFL over the last decade.
The Chargers now are concentrating on 2015 and they have added a strong offensive player to the mix in Melvin Gordon. Gordon was considered to be one of the best prospects in the draft and most experts had him as the first or second best running back in the class. Gordon ended up going second among RBs after Todd Gurley and he went to San Diego after the Chargers traded up to get him. Gordon rushed for over 2400 yards last season and if he performs well in camp, he could be the starter.
Gordon went at number 15 in the first round and according to UT San Diego reporter Kevin Acee on Twitter, Gordon has the chance to be the starter. The team let Ryan Mathews leave in free agency and he is shaping up to be the best all-around back on the roster with Donald Brown, Danny Woodhead and Branden Oliver also in San Diego. Gordon has strong skills up the middle and Acee writes that the team has been impressed with his pass blocking.