Melvin Gordon is essential to Los Angeles Chargers offense
Melvin Gordon has become one of the league’s most productive running backs. But could a holdout spoil Super Bowl hopes for the Los Angeles Chargers?
Some would say that the Los Angeles Chargers have enjoyed one of the best offseasons in the league. The team didn’t add a lot of veterans in free agency and stood pat in the draft with its own seven selections. General manager Tom Telesco has assembled quite the deep and talented roster.
And then less than two weeks before the team is slated to report to training camp in Costa Mesa, CA, there was news via ESPN’s Adam Schefter as running back Melvin Gordon will not report to training camp. In search of a new contract, Gordon wants a new deal or could demand to be traded.
Yikes. And according to Gordon’s agent, this is no idle threat.
"“He’s very serious,” explained Damarius Bilbo to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. “He’s worked his butt off and the fifth-year option is a result of where he was drafted. It’s what it is. But if we’d gotten a respectable offer, we wouldn’t be here. But he felt disrespected. He’s very serious.”"
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Gordon is in the final year of his original contract. The 15th overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft, the former University of Wisconsin standout is scheduled to make $5.605 million this upcoming season (via Spotrac). That obviously a pretty modest salary considering the two-time Pro Bowler’s production the past three years combined.
Over that span, Gordon has played in a combined 41 regular-season contests. The four-year pro has rolled up a solid 4,372 yards from scrimmage and reached the end zone 38 times. He’s accounted for 29.5 percent of the club’s 129 offensive touchdowns since 2016 – this while missing seven games.
As a rookie, the talented performer was cited as a disappointment by some. He played in 14 games in 2015, managed only 833 yards from scrimmage and did not score one touchdown. He’s followed that up with 12, 12 and 14 total touchdowns, respectively, the past three seasons.
The Los Angeles Chargers aren’t without quality reserves in Austin Ekeler and 2018 seventh-round pick Justin Jackson. That duo combined for 1,299 yards from scrimmage and nine touchdowns this past year.
Melvin Gordon: Possible trade destinations. dark. Next
Simply put, having Gordon as the main threat out of the backfield makes Anthony Lynn’s attack one of the best in the league and veteran quarterback Philip Rivers that more effective. It will be interesting to see how this all plays out.