Oh Boy...I'm gonna get nailed for this one.

[Den60]

No one is saying they won't be gone, but two years from now is 14 draft picks away as well as 2 years worth of FA. I think we might be able to scrounge up replacements.

I find it difficult to believe you can consistently draft players who can contribute after the 4th round. I expect we will be lucky to get 7 players over the next two drafts that will amount to much. Right now I can't say our second round pick in the last draft (the guy we traded a 4th to select) is going to be worth what we spent on him. He gets a pass this year because he missed so much time in PS but he isn't going to be fast and he isn't going to be physical. He is, at best, a 2 down LBer.

[Den60]

Did we have 7 hidden draft picks I was unaware of? I mean he took starters with the draft picks he had. I personally don't expect a starter outside the top 3 rounds. I don't blame him for not using a top 3 pick on what would have been a 4th string OLB at the time. Rolled the dice on health and lost. You have been one of the more vocal about all the holes and the amount of time it will take to rebuild, not sure how you can expect all the holes to be filled via the draft in one offseason. OLB wasn't an immediate need at the time.

I would have taken a good long look at Jarvis Jones then gone o-line the net couple of picks (maybe even the next three). I also said early on last season that I thought we should keep either Barnes or Phillips though I preferred the younger player. I also was not in agreement with TTs decision to not resign Vasquez (or at least spend the money to replace him). In fact, my very words on the matter was that we didn't have enough draft picks to fill the holes we had not counting those that we create by not keeping players beyond their first contract. You seem to be pretty bullish about letting Butler test FA. How is losing him going to make us better?

[Den60]

Trade Gates to the Shatriots.
AH is gone and who knows what Gronk has; Brady has probably been crying about losing to the Bungles non-stop.

Evidently the thinking is that he has no trade value. Right now the discussion is about trading CBJ and Mathews. I am not sure if it is a 7th for either or the pair right now. I actually hope we trade Mathews because I'd like a high draft pick this April and if we can't run the ball we are going to have issues.

[Stinky Wizzleteats+]

Keep dreaming for a team with 22 first round non-busts starters, i get it, but that doesnt happen EVER. Its a Virgin Mary dream. Only God can make it happen.

I know we are/ will struggle, dut id wager we will turn it around sooner than you think and with less tallent than you think we need.

[Beerman]

I would have taken a good long look at Jarvis Jones then gone o-line the net couple of picks (maybe even the next three). I also said early on last season that I thought we should keep either Barnes or Phillips though I preferred the younger player. I also was not in agreement with TTs decision to not resign Vasquez (or at least spend the money to replace him). In fact, my very words on the matter was that we didn't have enough draft picks to fill the holes we had not counting those that we create by not keeping players beyond their first contract. You seem to be pretty bullish about letting Butler test FA. How is losing him going to make us better?

The question is why are you so bullish on resigning him? He's already had to miss time, has yet to make any impact plays, and has been generally a disappointment this season. For the numbers that many of you were throwing around (top 5 ILB contracts) he's just not with that. This was a prove it year, so far he's proving he's not a franchise ILB. I'll be happy to see him prove me wrong.

Then you compare him with Cushing and Lee who got the big extensions and are making plays all over the field. Not even close to comparable. There's rookie ILB's and cheap vet options all having better years than him.

Spend those dollars on an OLB, a NT, or even Jarius Byrd who would even be cheaper but has already played at an all pro level.

Obviously this comes off as a rant, but just look at the salary cap expenditures for the chargers and we are paying top dollar for mediocre play. That needs to end.

[QSmokey]

Fraught with misconceptions, your post says more about you than it does about me.

First, it has been shown over and over again that the "big dollar" players were not, in fact, big dollar players.

Second, my vision of the playoff team we could have been this year concerned the activities that Telesco should have taken during the offseason. Having created a situation in which the team is many more players away from being a contender than it was before the season began, this post is addressing what the team should do in light of where it is now.

Third, while I agree with those that say that Telesco will play it conservatively and would not likely trade Rivers, what I have suggested is a trade for multiple (3) first round picks or close to that. For example, let's say TB finishes this season with the second worst record, entitling it to pick second in the 2014 draft. A trade with TB might be Rivers for their first and second this year and first next year. So, the point is that I am nowhere close to favoring trading Rivers for "magic beans, a wish and a prayer" as you suggest.

Here's what the draft haul in 2014 might look like before we reach the two 2015 first round draft picks and assuming we pick somewhere around 14th:

1-2 J. Clowney (OLB--for us)
1-14 L. Nix (NT)
2-34 L. Purifoy (CB)
2-46 L. Seastrunk (RB)
3-78 A. Murray (QB)
4-110 J. Attaochu (OLB)
5-142 T. Reese (WR)
6-174 D. Coleman (3-4 DE)

The defense would feature Liuget, Nix and Reyes on the line; Ingram, Te'o, Butler and Clowney at the LB level; and Purifoy, Cox, Weddle and Taylor in the secondary. Attaochu would be a reserve pass rusher. If we keep Freeney, then I would favor the drafting of J. Wilder, Jr., a big RB with some speed, which might be better for us anyway as it would give us Mathews, Seastrunk, Wilder and Woodhead and I would keep them all as Mathews approaches the end of his contract. An OLB set of Ingram, Clowney, Freeney and Johnson would be rock solid. Purifoy would be the cover corner that we lack.

Murray would start the first year and would be evaluated. Reese, a slot guy with good top end speed, would take over for Royal, who should be a salary cap casualty next year. If Murray succeeds, then we wouldn't have to draft a QB in 2015. If we had to take a QB, Murray would be fine as a #2 QB with Sorenson still around as our #3 QB.

The project would continue in 2015 and the team would likely be loaded in 2016. It isn't so crazy if the right kind of trade presents itself even if it probably will never happen, especially since it also clears out a bunch of salary from the roster for free agents, contract extensions, et cetera.

This is the part I like best about rooting the Chargers: The off-season. All of us getting the chance to play GM. I like your scenario, Yuba...although the only name I am even familiar with on your list is Clowney. Some other interesting names (literally): Purifoy (sounds like "purify"); Seastrunk; Attaochu (God bless you).

The thing about trading Rivers is this: No team would give us two 1st-round picks and a 2nd-rounder. And, trading Rivers is a bad BUSINESS decision, so even if it's the best FOOTBALL decision (and I'm not saying it would be), Spanos would never pull the trigger on it. So many fans would jump ship that they'd even start blacking out the AWAY games.

[Beerman]

No team is going to trade the #2 pick for Rivers when Mariota and Hundley are likely on the board.

[Yubaking]

No team is going to trade the #2 pick for Rivers when Mariota and Hundley are likely on the board.

There is a world of difference between a QB that has had some success in college and one who is a great NFL QB. Maybe a team like TB doesn't want to take the chance that they draft the next Smith, whether it be Akili (#3 overall), Alex (#1 overall) or Geno (#39 overall) when it knows it can have the real goods guaranteed to it in Rivers.

It is very unlikely that any of the QBs in this draft class or any draft class will be as good as Rivers, so it is a question of how close they think any of the QBs will come to being as good as Rivers. If I could have drafted Luck last year or had Rivers, I would have taken Rivers in a heartbeat and not thought twice about it and Luck is better than anything coming out this year.

The fact remains that if Cutler is worth two first round picks plus a 3rd for a 5th, then Rivers is worth substantially more than that.

[Yubaking]

This is the part I like best about rooting the Chargers: The off-season. All of us getting the chance to play GM. I like your scenario, Yuba...although the only name I am even familiar with on your list is Clowney. Some other interesting names (literally): Purifoy (sounds like "purify"); Seastrunk; Attaochu (God bless you).

The thing about trading Rivers is this: No team would give us two 1st-round picks and a 2nd-rounder. And, trading Rivers is a bad BUSINESS decision, so even if it's the best FOOTBALL decision (and I'm not saying it would be), Spanos would never pull the trigger on it. So many fans would jump ship that they'd even start blacking out the AWAY games.

Cutler was traded for two firsts and a third with a 5th coming back to the Bears. Rivers is worth MUCH MORE, so I think it would take two firsts and a second to get the deal done, although I suppose consideration needs to be given to where the picks are in each round of the draft.

It's a fun discussion, but I know it isn't likely to happen.

[QSmokey]

Cutler was traded for two firsts and a third with a 5th coming back to the Bears. Rivers is worth MUCH MORE, so I think it would take two firsts and a second to get the deal done, although I suppose consideration needs to be given to where the picks are in each round of the draft.

It's a fun discussion, but I know it isn't likely to happen.

I realize that that's what Cutler got, but he was 5 years younger than Rivers is now...and the Bears made a chump deal. No one is going to offer us two 1st-round picks and a 2nd for Rivers. The Bears should never have offered two firsts and a 3rd for Cutler. Terrible deal. Of course, a sucker is born every day....

[QSmokey]

There is a world of difference between a QB that has had some success in college and one who is a great NFL QB. Maybe a team like TB doesn't want to take the chance that they draft the next Smith, whether it be Akili (#3 overall), Alex (#1 overall) or Geno (#39 overall) when it knows it can have the real goods guaranteed to it in Rivers.

It is very unlikely that any of the QBs in this draft class or any draft class will be as good as Rivers, so it is a question of how close they think any of the QBs will come to being as good as Rivers. If I could have drafted Luck last year or had Rivers, I would have taken Rivers in a heartbeat and not thought twice about it and Luck is better than anything coming out this year.

The fact remains that if Cutler is worth two first round picks plus a 3rd for a 5th, then Rivers is worth substantially more than that.

Don't you think that if Tampa offered two 1st-round picks and a 2nd for Rivers we would take it? We'd be STUPID not to, IMO. Look at my post in the thread where I tried (unsuccessfully) to name 15 NFL-starter-worthy players on our roster. I had Stuckey/Taylor at #15. A special-teamer and an unproven, injured rookie (essentially).

[richpjr]

Rivers is going nowhere and I think we all know that. If anything, the question is how long they extend him for after this season. What's funny is even when he was "broken", he was still the 11th ranked QB in the league last season. That means that 21 other starting QBs were worse than him - when he was "broken". He is now the 3rd ranked QB in the league with a decimated offensive line, his #1 and 2 receivers gone, no speed from the young WR left, a mediocre running game and no help at all from sporadic special teams and one of the worst defense in the league. Yeah, let's trade the best guy on the team...