The contract dispute between the San Diego Chargers and rookie Joey Bosa may have gotten ugly near the end, but it’s over and it’s time for both parties to move on.
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Heading into the 2016 NFL draft, the San Diego Chargers were sure about which player the team wanted to target. The Chargers held the third overall pick, and with it, they made former Ohio State defensive end Joey Bosa the first non-quarterback selected in the draft.
Bosa wasn’t exactly a sack machine at Ohio State—he had just 5.0 in 2015—though he certainly showed some of the traits of a potential pass-rushing star. He was strong at the point of attack, could be explosive off the edge and had the type of relentless motor that causes defensive coordinators to drool. San Diego decision-makers were so sure that Bosa could be a game-changing defensive force that they passed on every other non-quarterback—plus trade possibilities—in order to snag him.
“We look forward to having Joey join us and getting him prepared as quickly as possible for the 2016 season.”‘ – Chargers GM Tom Telesco
Of course, expectations for Bosa haven’t been the problem this offseason. The issue is that Bosa and the Chargers couldn’t come to an agreement on the specifics of his rookie contract in time to get him into training camp. Bosa held out on his end of the deal and missed camp plus the first three games of the preseason.
Thankfully, the two sides decided to end their differences on Monday, and the Chargers inked the rookie defender to a four-year deal.
“We look forward to having Joey join us and getting him prepared as quickly as possible for the 2016 season,” Chargers general manager Tom Telesco said, via the Chargers’ official website.
Now that Bosa has signed, he can join the team, start working to earn a role, and begin putting the contract drama behind him, his employer and their fans.
There’s actually quite a bit worth burying in the past here.
The whole saga began when Bosa—or at least those who represent him—took issue with the team’s instance on including offset language in his rookie contract. The Chargers wanted to guarantee that if Bosa was released before the end of his four-year deal and was signed by another team, San Diego wouldn’t remain on the hook for the guaranteed portion of his deal.
There was also a disagreement over the payment of Bosa’s signing bonus. According to Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com, Bosa’s camp wanted all of the signing bonus to be paid this year—as is par for the course with top-five selections. San Diego wanted to defer a portion of the signing bonus to a later date.
These issues led to the extended holdout and a surprisingly nasty public feud between Bosa and the Chargers. Offers and counter offers were rejected. At one point, the team offered to pay 85 percent of the signing bonus up front, but eventually, the Chargers decided to pull that contract offer.
“I’m highly, highly disappointed in the path we’ve had to take,” Chargers president of football operations John Spanos said, per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune . “It’s so overly clear we had no choice. It would have been more difficult if I felt they were being reasonable. But when you’re dealing with someone who isn’t reasonable, it makes it easy.”
Bosa’s camp, in turn, blamed the Chargers organization.
“It is unfortunate the San Diego Chargers have decided to manipulate facts and negotiate in the media,” Brian Ayrault of CAA said in a statement, per Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune. “The team surely is not strengthening its relationship with Joey Bosa by taking this stance and making their position public.”
It seemed for a time, that a strained relationship between San Diego and Bosa was a very real possibility. All of that changes, though, now that Bosa has agreed to terms with the Chargers.
The #Chargers and Joey Bosa reached a 4-year, $25.8M contract, source said. He gets a $17M signing bonus. It's all fully guaranteed.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 29, 2016
Everyone involved in the entire ordeal—and especially the fans—can now start to forget about all of the drama that existed to this point. It will take some hard work on Bosa’s part, of course, because a disappointing on-field career could leave the holdout as the highlight of his NFL legacy.
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If Bosa can be the guy the Chargers thought they were drafting, though, all of the ugliness can be forgotten. The former Buckeye will chip away at any lingering ill will with each and every sack or key tackle he produces. If he can rack up enough of them during his time in San Diego, fans will start to look at him much in the same way they look at guys like LaDainian Tomlinson and Antonio Gates—great players who, at one time, had contract differences with the Chargers.