The Los Angeles Chargers announced Monday that they will part ways with quarterback Philip Rivers, thus ending his 16-year tenure with the franchise.
Several factors led to this decision.
“I don’t want to say they were in a big clash between the head coach, Anthony Lynn, and Philip Rivers, but I think philosophy-wise, game style, the type of quarterback that Anthony Lynn wants, I don’t think was the type of style that Philip Rivers brings,” Orange County Register Chargers reporter Gilbert Manzano said on After Hours with Amy Lawrence. “He’s always going to make a play down the field [even] if it costs him an interception or two. Anthony Lynn, he’s more of a run-the-ball [guy], be a little more cautious with the ball, don’t turn it over. Maybe there was a little friction this past year with that. The Chargers lost nine one-score [games], and we saw, especially in those primetime games, Rivers was chucking and ducking and it led to interceptions. I’m guessing for Anthony Lynn that was frustrating.”
Age was also a factor.
“He’s 38,” Manzano said. “He turns 39 next season. At some point, you got to figure out what are you going to do for the future? And also you’ve been doing this for the past 14 years with Philip Rivers as the starter and it hasn’t led to much winning. They haven’t won a Super Bowl. They haven’t won a division title since 2009. They’ve won a playoff game here and there, but ultimately, you know where it’s going to lead you. Maybe to a divisional round, you sneak into the playoffs, backdoor. After 14 years of doing that, maybe it’s time for a change. He’s 38 years old, and they really like Anthony Lynn. It’s year four for him at the helm. Why not try to do it his way now? We’ll see how that goes.”
Rivers threw 20 interceptions in 2019 – the second most of his career. The Chargers have missed the playoffs in eight of the last 10 seasons.
“Lynn was a guy who really wanted to draft Deshaun Watson and Patrick Mahomes,” Manzano said. “The front office [felt], ‘We’ve got Rivers for a few more years. Let’s not go that route.’ Now they want to go to a new era. It did happen pretty fast, but after a while, it was like, ‘We can’t keep wasting years.’ For the Chargers in Los Angeles, it’s time to make a splash. You got to win a lot, and they didn’t do it last year.”