So do the Chargers want Tom Brady or not?
By Alex Barth, 985TheSportsHub.com
On the day the Los Angeles Chargers officially announced they will be moving on from Philip Rivers as their starting quarterback, there are conflicting reports as to whether or not they will pursue Tom Brady to replace him.
Bleacher Report’s Matt Miller indicated in his most recent scouting notebook that “all signs” point to the Chargers taking Justin Herbert or Tua Tagovailoa with the sixth overall pick in April’s NFL Draft. He added there was been an increase in chatter in recent weeks about the team trying to initiate a trade with the Carolina Panthers for quarterback Cam Newton. Miller went on to say, “the most likely move is still to draft the next franchise quarterback at No. 6 overall, but there’s enough buzz surrounding a Newton trade to mention it.”
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport seemed to confirm these reports Monday afternoon on NFL Network, saying “Anthony Lynn seems to favor a more mobile-type quarterback,” and that “it would not be a surprise if they take a quarterback potentially very high in the draft.”
From NFL Now: Philip Rivers was never the kind of QB that #Chargers coach Anthony Lynn envisioned. Now, Los Angeles can go find his successor and Rivers can take one more shot at it with a new team. pic.twitter.com/Qzc6wAqGT4
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 10, 2020
So there you have it…the Chargers want a young, mobile quarterback. Tom Brady to LA is out of the question. Right? Well, not exactly. At the end of this same segment, Rapoport throws in, “From my understanding if Brady does become available, this is a team that would potentially throw their hat in the ring for Brady for a year or maybe two.”
Now Tom Brady is a lot of things, but he’s certainly not a young, mobile quarterback. Do the Chargers plan to sign Brady and draft a QB in the top 10 to learn under him, even if they are completely different archetypes? Is the draft a ‘Plan B’ if signing Brady doesn’t come to fruition? What about Cam Newton? Certainly it makes little to no sense to have both him and Brady on the roster. Is this the Chargers covering all their bases, or perhaps do head coach Anthony Lynn and ownership have two different visions for how this offseason will play out?
Of course this is all pending Tom Brady reaching free agency, which sounds as likely as ever based on another Ian Rapoport nugget relating to Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
We likely won’t have answers to these questions until NFL Free Agency opens on March 18, but in the meantime #BradyWatch has taken a few more unexpected turns.
Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Hate mail? Let him hear it on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at [email protected].
