The San Diego Chargers agreed to a contract extension with quarterback Philip Rivers. The deal is four years, $83.25 million dollars with $65 million guaranteed. The contract runs through 2019. It also includes a no-trade clause. What kind of deal is this for the Chargers?
Rivers was the fourth pick in the 2004 draft by the New York Giants. Eli Manning went number one and told the Chargers organization that he wouldn’t play for them. The Giants traded Rivers and three draft picks including a 2004 third -round, 2005 first-round, and a 2005 fifth-round pick.
In his first two seasons with the Chargers he didn’t play much. He had to watch and learn from Drew Brees. Rivers appeared in four games throwing for 148 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Rivers started for the Chargers in 2006. That season he threw for 3,388 yards, 22 touchdowns and had only nine picks. His best year so far was in 2013 throwing for 4,478 yards, 32 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions.
Rivers has impressive numbers in his career. He has tossed for 36,655 yards, 252 touchdowns, and 122 interceptions. He has been named to the Pro Bowl five times. Since the start of the 2006 season, he guided San Diego to four divisional titles and five playoff appearances. They haven’t gone to the Super Bowl. The closest they came was 2008 when they went all the way to the AFC Championship Game. They lost to the New England Patriots 21-12.
The Chargers are overpaying Philip Rivers, but they had no other choice. His original deal was going to expire at the end of the season. Rivers planned on playing this year without an extension. The Chargers could have risked waiting to talk to him until the end of the season. The problem with doing that is he could have agreed to a contract with another team. Plenty of teams would sign this quarterback because he has proven he can lead a team in the regular season. The Chargers needed to do all they could to keep their franchise quarterback. This insures they will have Rivers for the next four years. The Chargers could become a team that makes the playoffs regularly and they will be in play to win the AFC West every single year that Rivers is the quarterback. It’s a good deal to keep him.
What do you think of the contract extension for Philp Rivers?
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