After weeks of speculation and rumor and stress and unsubstantiated reports and counter-arguments and wild NFL Draft day scenarios not even Kevin Costner could cook up, the Chargers ended any more consternation for their fans.
About two hours before the start of the 2015 Draft, the Bolts told their franchise quarterback he will NOT be traded.
It’s likely that Rivers never really believed the rumors himself. During the off-season he’s attended all the organized workouts, being the usual omnipresent fixture at the Chargers training facility. Although it made for some interesting scenarios, the biggest being San Diego obtaining Oregon quarterback and reigning Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota by dealing Rivers to the Tennessee Titans, the move (as we here at NBC 7 Sportswrap have stood by from the beginning) never really made football sense.
You simply do not trade one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL who still has the ability to play at a high level for a few more years that you have contractual control of for at least two seasons away for a rookie QB, no matter how good you think that man is going to be.
The jury is out on Mariota. He’s not an Andrew Luck or John Elway-type, a guy who is as close to a sure bet as you’ll find at the position in the NFL Draft. Plus, assuming Tampa Bay takes Jameis Winston at number one as expected; Mariota would fall in to a dubious spot. Quarterbacks drafted second overall don’t have a fantastic track record.
Here’s the list of signal-callers who have been drafted 2nd in the modern Draft era:
- Robert Griffin III (One playoff appearance, several games missed due to injury)
- Donovan McNabb (One Super Bowl appearance, led the resurrection of the Eagles franchise)
- Ryan Leaf (I’ll leave that one alone)
- Rick Mirer (Eight seasons in the NFL, 24-44 career record)
- Bert Jones (10 seasons in the NFL, 102-96 career record, 0-3 playoff record)
- Archie Manning (15 NFL seasons, 2-time Pro Bowler)
McNabb and Manning are the best of the bunch. The rest are either decent, below-average or disasters. So, while we may never know exactly how far down the road the Chargers went with entertaining the idea of trading Rivers, we do know that, for now, they probably made the right choice in keeping him around a while longer.
