First... a little bit of musac to get you in the mood: [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDiCxhtGMhc"]YouTube - San Diego Super Chargers[/ame] [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QN6jyvWpwI8"]YouTube - San Diego Super Chargers Sung by Parrot[/ame] Quarterbacks Philip Rivers $6,500,000 Billy Volek $700,000 Charlie Whitehurst $530,000 Running Backs Darren Sproles $6,600,000 Franchise Tag (r) Chris "Beanie" Wells $650,000 (r) Kory Sheets $400,000 Terrelle Smith $300,000 Mike Tolbert $385,000 Jamall Lee $300,000 Wide Receivers Vincent Jackson $545,000 Lee Evans $9,000,000 Malcom Floyd $1,500,000 2nd Round Tender for RFA Craig Davis $510,000 Josh Morgan $385,000 Tight Ends Jeremy Shockey $3,025,000 (r) Shawn Nelson unsigned Jerramy Stevens $300,000 Offensive Line Marcus McNeill $530,000 Kris Dielman $5,500,000 Nick Hardwick $2,500,000 Kevin Shaffer $300,000 Andrew Whitworth $300,000 Jeromey Clary $700,000 (ERFA Tendered) Tony Hills $300,000 Steve Justice $385,000 (r) Louis Vasquez $400,000 Defensive Line Marcus Spears $735,000 Luis Castillo $1,300,000 Jacques Cesaire $1,000,000 Gabe Watson $900,000 (r) Roy Miller $400,000 Fred Evans $600,000 (r) Pannel Egboh $400,000 Linebackers Lofa Tatupu $1,350,000 Shawne Merriman $2,272,000 Jyles Tucker $460,000 (r) Rey Maualuga $750,000 (r) Larry English $650,000 Antwan Applewhite $385,000 Bruce Davis $385,000 Tim Dobbins $530,000 Brandon Siler $460,000 Defensive Backs Quentin Jammer $3,250,000 Antoine Cason $385,000 (r) Sean Smith $600,000 Eric Green $300,000 Jarrett Bush $300,000 Eric Weddle $460,000 Jermaine Phillips $2,500,000 Paul Oliver $460,000 Kevin Ellison $300,000 Kickers/Punters Mike Scifres $1,000,000 Nate Kaeding $1,450,000 Total Cap Figure: $66,977,000 Cap Space: 23,000!!
Free Agents RB Darren Sproles (UFA) - Franchise Tag @ $6,600,000 WR Malcom Floyd (RFA) - Second Round Tender @ $1,500,000 OL Mike Goff (UFA) OL Jeromey Clary (ERFA) - Resigned @ $700,000 OL Jeremy Newberry (UFA) OL Kynan Forney (UFA) LB Marques Harris (UFA) DB Cletis Gordon (RFA) Free Agent Acquisitions (in order of when they signed) T Kevin Shaffer $300,000 G/T Andrew Whitworth $300,000 TE Jerramy Stevens $300,000 NT Fred Evans $600,000 SS Jermaine Phillips $2,500,000 FB Terrelle Smith $300,000 QB Billy Volek $700,000 CB Eric Green $300,000 CB Zackary Bowman $300,000 T Tony Hills $300,000 OLB Kenny Iwebema $300,000 DL Jimmy Kennedy $300,000 RB Jesse Chatman $300,000 CB Jarrett Bush $300,000 SS Kevin Ellison $300,000 RB Jamall Lee $300,000
Trades WR Chris Chambers ($4,550,000) to San Francisco for WR Josh Morgan ($385,000) and Third round pick (74th overall) RB LaDanian Tomlinson ($6,725,000) to Seattle for LB Lofa Tatupu ($1,350,000) T LJ Shelton ($1,000,000) to Jacksonville for 4th round pick (127th overall) 3rd (72nd overall) and 7th (208th overall) to Atlanta for RB Jerious Norwood ($530,000) LB Shaun Phillips ($2,900,000), 1st (16th overall) and 3rd (80th overall ) to San Francisco for 1st (10th overall) and 2nd (58th overall) CB Antonio Cromartie ($935,000) to Dallas for LB Kevin Burnett ($596,000), DE Marcus Spears ($735,000), 2nd (49th overall), 4th (115th overall) and 5th (148th overall) DE Igor Olshansky, 2nd (58th overall), 5th (140th overall), 6th (176th overall) to San Francisco for 1st round (25th overall), 3rd round (80th overall) and DE Ikaika Alama-Francis LB Stephen Cooper ($2,375,000) to Kansas City for 3rd (85th overall) LB Kevin Burnett, 4th (127th overall), 5th (148th overall) to Seattle for TE Jeremy Shockey ($3,125,000) 3rd round pick (80th overall) to Arizona for NT Gabe Watson ($900,000) RB Jerious Norwood and 1st round pick (25th overall) to NY Giants for 1st round pick (21st overall) and 3rd round pick (73rd overall) NT Jamal Williams ($3,900,000) and FB Jacob Hester ($385,000) to Pittsburgh for 2nd round pick (41st overall) and OLB Bruce Davis ($385,000) TE Antonio Gates ($3,250,000) and 3rd round pick (85th overall) to NY Giants for 1st round pick (25th overall) 2nd round pick (49 overall) to Seattle for WR Lee Evans ($9,000,000) and two fifth round picks (148 and 149 overall) 3rd round pick (73rd overall) and 5th round pick (149th overall) to Kansas City for 3rd round pick (67th overall) 4th round pick (115th overall) to Pittsburgh for C/G Steve Justice and 4th round pick (126th overall) 4th round pick (126th overall) to Cleveland for 6th round pick (164th overall), 6th round pick (166th overall), and 7th (212th overall)
Draft Picks 1st - 10th LB Rey Maualuga - USC 1st - 21st RB Chris "Beanie" Wells - Ohio State 1st - 25th LB Larry English - NIU 2nd - 41st CB Sean Smith - Utah 3rd - 67th TE Shawn Nelson - Southern Miss 4th - 112th NT/DE Roy Miller - Texas 5th - 148th RB Kory Sheets - Purdue 6th - 164th DE Pannel Egboh - Stanford 6th - 166th G Louis Vasquez - Texas Tech 7th - 212th QB Mike Reilly - Central Washington
Press Conference Transcripts 1/16/09 - The Hiring San Diego (CA) In a somewhat surprising move, the AFC West Division champion San Diego Chargers announced the firing of GM AJ Smith and hiring of Paul "Tex Spamm" 13 as his replacement. P"TS"13, as he is uncommonly referred to, joins the Chargers after his one year fairly successful stint as GM of the Houston Texans. Most known for his auction style trading format, he sat down with our own Dick Inher for a one on one: Dick: First let me say congratulations on your new team. What is Norv Turner's future with the team, after a 4 and 8 start, his team finished strong and he seemed to have saved his job? P"TS"13: Thank you, Dick... Yes, that is quite true. Norv really did an amazing job, not unlike the pilot of that plane that miraculously landed on a river, and really saved this season. Norv's job is as solid as a stick of butter on a hot San Diego day. Dick: You do realize that you just compared Norv's turnaround of the Chargers to saving 155 passengers on a jet plane with both engines inoperable? Don't you think you're taking things too far? P"TS"13: Tell that to the many Chargers fans out there Dick: o... kay... Back to business then. P"TS"13: Yes, I have work to do, players to cut, I mean evaluate. Dick: Is LT's roster spot safe for next season? P"TS"13: He's an amazing talent, and we'd like to thank him for his contribution to the Chargers over the years. Dick: Can we expect to see him traded via your auction format? P"TS"13: You know what they say about expectations. Dick: No, what? P"TS"13: They are like opinions, everybody has one. Dick: I thought that was asses? P"TS"13: Have you seen my wife's? Nobody has one of those! Dick: Fair enough. You’ve no doubt got an idea for where the problem areas are on the Chargers, the needs if you will. P"TS"13: Yes, in all seriousness, there are needs and wants and desires, but I just want to get one thing straight, the Chargers are going to be tougher, meaner, bigger, faster, stronger than ever before. It’s time to put the “arg” back in Chargers. No more ***** footing around. If you’re hurt, save the tears for your mommy. Dick: Is that aimed at anyone in particular? P"TS"13: No, it’s a team game, team concept. I won’t go pointing the fingers at just any running back from TCU… Dick: Is there anything you’d like the other teams in the NFL to know? P"TS"13: No, they’ll find out soon enough. Dick: What did you learn from your time with the Texans and how will that help you succeed here in San Diego? P"TS"13: Finally, a good question… what I learned is that on the football field, you have to play with leverage, a lineman has to get under their opposition to be on top of them. Much is the same when it comes to the front office. If you’re not on top of your opponent, then you might as well be under them. Dick: That makes little sense. P"TS"13: That’s why you’re behind a microphone and I’m where I am. Now I have business to do. Please, get out of my office. Dick: You’re in our studio, sir. P"TS"13: I see… well, don’t ever let that happen again… And with that, the interview came to an abrupt end. It remains to be seen just what exactly will come of the 2008 Chargers roster. How many will stay, how many will go and at what cost. One thing we do know is that this ride will be interesting. 2/6/09 - Chambers is Dealt The San Diego Chargers have traded WR Chris Chambers to the San Francisco 49ers for a third round pick and WR Josh Morgan. Acquired during the 2007 season, Chambers caught 33 passes for 462 yards and 5 touchdowns in 14 games last season. We go now to a live press conference with the Chargers’ GM Paul: Paul: We want to thank Chris for his tenure here in San Diego, we wish him well in San Francisco as they were seeking a big name to add to their receiving corps. What we have done with this move is unload some of our salary cap, just over 4.5 million, and acquire a third round pick plus a young up and coming receiver in Josh Morgan whom we are quite thrilled to obtain. Josh will be in his second season this year after being a 6th round pick of the 49ers in the 2008 draft. He’s a big kid, 6 foot 220 pounds and will fit in with what we do on offense. If you look at his stats from 2008, when given the opportunity, he proved he can be a capable NFL receiver, with 14 catches for 245 yards and 3 TD’s in his last 4 games. If you average that out over a 16 game season, that’s almost 60 catches for 1,000 yards and 12 TD’s. Not bad considering the situation last season with the 49ers. We felt he would have been drafted much higher if not for some off field issues that are now behind him. Lastly, we were absent a 2nd round pick in this upcoming draft, so to gain another third will give us some flexibility early on. Paul: I’ll take a couple of questions Press: Chambers was acquired for a second round pick, do you feel that you received adequate value in this trade? Paul: I really do, when you look at the salary, receiving a mid third rounder, that second round pick was a late pick, and receiving another receiver who will contribute straight away (he would have been penciled in as a starter for the 49ers), I’m very happy with this move. Press: Do you feel you could have received more, the offseason just started and he wasn’t on the block for very long? There are other GM’s who may have overpaid for a former Dolphin. As you know many of these GM’s are Dolphin fans. Paul: I think you have to be realistic and not let your emotions get the best of you. If you look at his stats, we believed that they were on the decline. This is a receiver who is 31 this season. Add that to his salary, and I think we got a very fair deal. Press: Will you be making any other trades in the near future? Rumor has it that you are close to moving LT? Paul: Let me just say this, when I took over this team, the first thing that stood out to me was the amount of contracts expiring after this season. Cornerstones of our franchise, such as Rivers, Jackson, Merriman are scheduled to be free agents after the 2009 season. Part of my goal is to position this team with an eye towards that 2010 season. We will be working to extend as many players contractually as possible. It is better to trade a player a year early than a year late…. That’s all the time I have for right now, you guys have a great day. 2/6/09 - LT Sent Packing for Lofa Tatupu Just one day after trading Chris Chambers, the Chargers have really done it now, trading away former MVP LaDanian Tomlinson. For LT, the Chargers have acquired another LT, inside linebacker Lofa Tatupu, one of the leaders of the Seattle Seahawks defense. Lets go live to Chargers’ headquarters and join their GM’s press conference: Paul: Well, hello again everybody, this is becoming exciting times for the San Diego Chargers. Today, we traded LT for LT. It’s no secret that LaDanian was on the block. He’s been a great player here for many years and we wish him nothing but the best up in Seattle. I commend their GM for working with us thru this process. He’s really putting together some big names up there on offense. We are in a situation in Chargers’ history where we have a great team, but chemistry wise we’re missing some pieces. Philip Rivers is the leader of our offense, and now there is no question. It’s his offense, and it’s up to me to put the right pieces around him. We have Darren Sproles, whom we’ll likely franchise tag and have him back next year. He’s such an exciting player who can take it to the house every time he touches the ball. Can he carry the load for 16 games? We don’t know, I’m a firm believer in tandem backs and we have Michael Bennett to help carry the load. Now, we acquired Lofa Tatupu, he is from the San Diego area originally and is a heck of a defensive leader. We slot him right into the heart of our defense and immediately improve our front seven. I can’t say how happy I am to acquire someone of his intelligence, work ethic, heart, the things you can’t measure in a forty time. We knew that in trading away someone of LT’s character, we needed to bring back that same character and have it be preferably on the defensive side of the ball. I can’t think of another player in this league who fits the bill for what we were looking for. We’ve also shaved off about five million in salary cap in this move as LaDanian counted 6.725 million to Tatupu's 1.35 million, nine million in two days. Press: Lofa is only six feet, do you think he fits in with the style of defense the Chargers employ, namely 3-4? Paul: Absolutely, he fits in. Defenses in this day and age are so much about versatility. You’ve got to be able to match what the offense is trying to do, whether that be to spread you out in multiple receiver sets or go three tight end / jumbo packages. With Lofa, we’ve added a dimension of flexibility to our defense. He’s a guy that’s going to be on the field for every down. You add guys to the outside in Shawne Merriman, Sean Phillips and Jyles Tucker who can get to the quarterback. And we feel we have one of, if not the best, linebacker corps in the NFL. Not to mention Coop, Dobbins, Wilhelm, Siler, Applewhite… We have a ton of depth at that position at the moment. Press: Could that depth be used to trade away any of those players to get better in other areas of the team? Paul: I wouldn’t say no, but it’s going to take a lot to break into that group of players and pry one away from us. Press: Tomlinson had been great for so many years, how do you replace him at the running back position? Paul: Again, I think it’s going to take a team effort, not just from Darren Sproles. We’re not done adding pieces to the puzzle, particularly on offense. Time will tell how free agency plays out and then the draft. If there’s a trend in today’s NFL, teams are getting good backs in the draft, not just in the first round. You take last year, where Forte and Slaton were drafted, I believe in the second and third rounds respectively, and you go into this draft thinking you can get a good back in that area. Now LT was an elite back, yet he couldn’t carry the load himself, and when we know we’re bringing Sproles back, we felt we couldn’t justify keeping both backs. Press: You seem to be getting younger players rather than older players in these trades, was that part of the plan? Paul: Well Lofa is only 26, he’s been in the league four seasons now. LaDanian has been in the league eight years. So yeah we got younger and saved some money on the cap which is huge. It’ll allows us to go get some guys in free agency we couldn’t have afforded otherwise. Ok guys, thanks for the visit, back to work… I have a call coming in... 2/28/09 The moving of Cromartie... I'll take questions... no opening statement... why are you trading Cromartie Quite simple, we have three great corners on this team as well as Eric Weddle and Paul Oliver, who can cover from their safety positions. We felt Antonio would be the one that would return us the most value. why not Quentin Jammer and his higher salary cap? the 3.25 salary for Quentin is no problem whatsoever. With Cason, our other starting corner at $385k, you average them together and you're less than 2 mill per player which is in great shape considering what other teams are doing right now free agency wise. We also think Quentin is a better corner than Cromartie. So the salary fits easily. What's the word on Sproles? nothing yet. His salary is certainly making it a little harder to move. So, we could keep him, although I'd rather move him for at least a second round pick. That's all it would take for your franchise designee? yes, time to run, back to work... 3/5/09 In a fairly surprising development, the San Diego Chargers today announced that they have acquired tight end Jeremy Shockey for 2 picks and Kevin Burnett. We go now to a press conference with Mr. Paul... Paul: Hello... It's been a busy offseason thus far. We've done a lot of things. And we're not even at the draft stage yet...I'm happy to welcome Jeremy to our football team. He joins Antonio Gates as our starting tight ends... why start one when you can start two? He's 28 years old, still in his prime, and feel that he can bring an added dimension to our passing and also running offense as we feel he's underrated as a blocker. I'll take any questions you may have. Some short press guy with glasses: It doesn't take a genius to figure out what your next move is going to be. You're going to move Antonio Gates aren't you? Paul: Well, I wouldn't jump to conclusions there, although, you probably have to in order to see.... We think it's a tremendous advantage to have two pro bowl caliber tight ends on our team. We look at the draft and what's left in free agency and realize that the tight end group is rather weak. That's not to say we wouldn't take one in the first round... we like Brandon Pettigrew... picking at 10, he's an option for us there... but other than him, it's definitely weak. So that said, if a team is out there looking for a tight end, and if the right offer is there, we may move Scott Chandler. Hot blond with button down blouse: Hello... Paul: well hello... HB: You seem to have consolidated your picks... you have seven draft picks still yet they are all in the fourth round and higher... was that a plan going into this offseason? Paul: What an astute observation. Are you free tonight? Perhaps dinner at my place? You can meet my wife... But seriously, yes is your answer... hah.. we believe that our team needed depth across the whole spectrum, yet a player in the later rounds is going to have a difficult time in making this squad. So the goal was to acquire as many higher picks as possible without giving away the farm. Now, we traded some key pieces, Sean Phillips, Chris Chambers, Antonio Cromartie, Stephen Cooper... yet we feel we had the depth already on our team to stand trading these players away. Today we traded Stephen Cooper for a third round pick. And we also dealt Kevin Burnett in that Shockey trade. Yet we have Tim Dobbins, who I feel is a better impact player than Cooper was. He forced 3 fumbles last season in about a half a season starting. Cooper forced 3 fumbles in his last THREE seasons as a Charger! I also feel he is a better fit next to Lofa Tatupu, our other starting inside linebacker. Tall Brunette: What positions are you focusing on in the draft? Paul: What positions do you have mind dear? mwahahahhaha... well, we're in such good shape that we can take best player available with all of our picks. That is a tremendous advantage. We have two firsts, one second, two thirds, and two fourths... So we really feel blessed to have this opportunity to make this team better. The sweet spot of this draft is about that 20 to 80 range... we're getting several good players in that range who will be Chargers for long long time. That's all for now... LIGHTNING STRIKES TWICE FOR GATES AND WILLIAMS Posted by Mike Florio on March 22, 2009, 7:05 p.m. Perhaps there is a method to the madness that has taken hold of San Diego over the weekend. Regardless of the reasons, two moves have now been made that will either live on in history as highly beneficial to the Chargers, or crash and burn in flames. Antonio Gates is now a Giant and Jamal Williams is now a Steeler. Says the Chargers' GM in a team released statement: There are rumors making the rounds that the Chargers could use some of these high picks to acquire veteran talent. With now over $10 million in cap room, the Chargers are in good position to acquire higher priced players via trade. We shall see how this week unfolds heading up to the draft.
Cuts CB Steve Gregory $535,000 DE Eric Bakhtiari $310,000 LB Anthony Waters $460,000 DT Ian Scott $620,000 DE Keith Grennan $385,000 TE Kris Wilson $620,000 RB Billy Latsko $385,000 QB Billy Volek $2,500,000 WR Kassim Osgood $750,000 TE Brandon Manumaleuna $1,450,000 G Scott Mruckowski $620,000 LS David Binn $845,000 DE Ryon Bingham $1,350,000 LB Matt Wilhelm $2,000,000 SS Clinton Hart $1,300,000 CB Zackary Bowman $300,000 DT Jimmy Kennedy $300,000 LB Kenny Iwebema $300,000 DE Ikaika Alama-Francis $460,000 TE Scott Chandler $460,000 WR Legedu Naanee $460,000 RB Jesse Chatman $300,000 QB Mike Reilly drafted 7th round, not signed
Depth Chart - as of 4.15.09 WR Vincent Jackson/ Malcom Floyd LT Marcus McNeill/ Tony Hills LG Kris Dielman C Nick Hardwick/ Steve Justice RG Andrew Whitworth/ Louis Vasquez RT Kevin Shaffer/ Jeromey Clary TE Jeremy Shockey/ Shawn Nelson/ Jerramy Stevens WR Lee Evans/ Buster Davis/ Josh Morgan RB Darren Sproles/ Chris Wells JR/ Kory Sheets/ Jamall Lee FB Terrelle Smith/ Mike Tolbert QB Philip Rivers/ Billy Volek/ Charles Whitehurst DE Marcus Spears/ Jacques Cesaire NT Gabe Watson/ Roy Miller DE Luis Castillo/ Fred Evans/ Pannel Egboh LOLB Jyles Tucker/ Larry English/ Bruce Davis LILB Rey Maualuga/ Brandon Siler RILB Lofa Tatupu/ Tim Dobbins ROLB Shawne Merriman/ Antwan Applewhite CB Quentin Jammer/ Sean Smith/ Jarrett Bush SS Jermaine Phillips / Kevin Ellison FS Eric Weddle/ Paul Oliver CB Antoine Cason/ Eric Green K Nate Kaeding P Mike Scifres LS Steve Justice KR Darren Sproles / Kory Sheets PR Darren Sproles / Kory Sheets
