Tag: Easton Stick

Poll: How should Chargers address quarterback position?

Should the Los Angeles Chargers sign a free agent quarterback, make a deal for one, or draft a rookie?

For the first time in 14 years, the Chargers will have a different guy starting at quarterback moving forward after the franchise announced that Philip Rivers will no longer be with the team.

Even though it’s hard to visualize another person other than No. 17 under center, the show must go on.

Los Angeles currently has Tyrod Taylor and Easton Stick on the roster, with Taylor likely penciled in as the starter at the moment. But it’s hard to believe that they will roll into the new season with just those two.

L.A. will have three different options to address the position this offseason.

  1. Free agency
  2. Trade
  3. NFL Draft

If the team wishes to find a signal-caller via free agency, there are eight soon-to-be free agents that could draw their attention, with Tom Brady and Dak Prescott leading the pack.

Acquiring a quarterback through a trade hasn’t been talked about as much, but should the Chargers explore this outlet, a player like Cam Newton could be enticing to the team.

Los Angeles Chargers could surpass both of these, and draft a quarterback with their first-round pick for the first time since 2004. Some of the top options include Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa, Oregon’s Justin Herbert or Utah State’s Jordan Love.

I believe that the route the Bolts should address the position by drafting one early on. They will likely have one or two of the tree top options available when they’re on the clock, all of whom have potential to be franchise quarterbacks.

Also, rookie quarterback contracts are a cap space-saving building block – which would benefit the Chargers.

With that being said, what do you believe the Bolts should do this offseason to replace Rivers?

Vote in the poll below.

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Expert panel says Chargers have most difficult future QB situation in NFL

The Chargers will have their toughest decision to make when the 2019 season comes to an end.

The Chargers will have their toughest decision to make when the 2019 season comes to an end. The team will have to decide whether or not they will move forward with their quarterback of the past 16 seasons.

Our good friends at Touchdown Wire spoke with a panel of experts (one former head coach, two former general managers and one current general manager) and asked what they thought of the future quarterback situation for each team in the league.

Here is what they thought about the situation in Los Angeles:

This is perhaps the league’s most difficult quarterback situation to assess at this moment. Philip Rivers, 37, is in the last year of his contract. Backup Tyrod Taylor is signed through 2020, but he’s not a long-term answer as the starter. The Chargers likely will try to re-sign Rivers. But it’s time to find his heir apparent. Easton Stick, a fifth-round choice this year out of North Dakota State, is viewed as nothing more than a backup. The Chargers may use an early-round pick on a quarterback with the potential to be a starter. “Keep Rivers if he wants to keep playing. But it’s time to draft a quarterback for the future,” a panelist said. “They’re not going to have a top pick, but they still should be high enough to get a good quarterback.”

Rivers, who will turn 38 in December, is slated to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the year. Rivers is coming off a 2018 season, where he threw for 32 touchdowns and only 12 interceptions. But it’s been the exact opposite in 2019.

Rivers has thrown 15 touchdowns and 14 interceptions, which ranks as the second-most in the league. The reason for his poor play has been resulted from an inconsistent offensive line, as well as his own signs of regression, including mental miscues and lack of velocity on his passes.

It’s unfortunate to see a decline in play from a player that has carried the team for such a long time, and it has been done with a below average offensive line for the majority of his professional career.

The Chargers have not addressed the quarterback position in the first four rounds of the draft since Rivers became the full-time starter since 2006.

Los Angeles has Tyrod Taylor and rookie Easton Stick behind Rivers, but there isn’t anything that suggests one of those guys will be the long-term solution, which means that the team could heavily consider one in the 2020 NFL draft.

The way we see it, there are one of three things that will happen.

The Chargers will re-sign Rivers to a short, but large contract and address the offensive line heavily this offseason. They re-sign Rivers and still draft his successor early on. Or, the team lets Rivers walk, they draft a quarterback in the early rounds and let Taylor be the bridge in 2020.

The bottom line is that Los Angeles will have a big decision to make when this offseason rolls around and it will be one of the heftier headlines when that time comes.

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Chargers’ Anthony Lynn not considering benching QB Philip Rivers

Don’t expect to see Tyrod Taylor or rookie Easton Stick out on the field anytime soon.

While quarterback Philip Rivers is coming off two consecutive games that were undoubtably the worst of the past three seasons, the question has come up if the the Chargers are going to bench him.

Coach Anthony Lynn has no intentions to bench the veteran signal-caller anytime soon on Tuesday.

“I’m not going to entertain that right now. I’m going to evaluate everything, and right now Philip Rivers is our starting quarterback. But I’m not going to single one position out. I’m looking at everybody. We’re 4-7. Everybody can be doing something better,” Lynn said.

The past two contests have been the difference between staying alive in playoff contention and having those chances being diminished, and a lot of it falls on Rivers’ shoulders. He has completed 54.2% of his passes with three touchdowns and seven interceptions as the Bolts have lost both games.

There are a lot of things that will have fingers being pointed at for the reason that Los Angeles is sitting at a surprising 4-7 record, but the 14 interceptions in the 11-game span is one of the reasons why the team is where they’re at entering their bye week.

The offensive line has been the narrative all season long, but Rivers’ decision-making, pocket awareness and lack of anticipation is a main ingredient for the team’s lackluster 2019 season.

Nearly eliminated from the postseason, the idea of benching Rivers and playing Tyrod Taylor or rookie Easton Stick has been brought up because the Chargers wouldn’t have much to lose.

There’s reason to believe that this could be Rivers final season in a blue and gold uniform, so giving Taylor or Stick some playing time before the season ends would give the coaching staff an idea what the two look like in live-game action.

Heading into bye week after the dreadful loss, the only thing that fans can think about is what the future holds for Rivers.

“I don’t have that luxury to think about Philip and the future, his contract. My focus is the next game against the Denver Broncos. At the end of the season that will take care of itself. Right now we’re trying to finish this season on a positive note,” Lynn said.

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Report: Chargers ‘not sure’ about attending QB Colin Kaepernick’s workout

The Los Angeles Chargers are not certain whether or not they will be attending quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s workout on Saturday.

Quarterback Colin Kaepernick will be working out in Atlanta, GA on Saturday for a workout in front of multiple NFL team owners and coaches.

The Chargers told ESPN’s Josina Anderson they were not definitely sure whether a team rep would attend Kaepernick’s workout. The said the team might send a scout, but emphasized they’re good with the position.

Had it been two years ago, it might’ve been a different story.

With Philip Rivers, Tyrod Taylor and rookie Easton Stick, it is not a pressing position of need. If Kaepernick had this workout a couple years back, the Bolts might have been more enticed by it because then, the team had Cardale Jones and Kellen Clemens as the backups to Rivers.

Kaepernick last played in the NFL in 2016 with the San Francisco 49ers and stirred up attention after kneeling during the national anthem, which ended up being a legal suit. The lawsuit has been settled and he will look to make his return to the league.

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