DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Tomlinson won't take pay cut...

Quote:

---

In a radio interview Monday, Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson made three things perfectly clear (everything else was up for interpretation):

* One, he was not happy playing for the Chargers last season.
* Two, he wants to return to San Diego, the place he has called home since being drafted in 2002.
* Three, if he does return to the Chargers, it won’t come at a reduced rate.

“It’s never been about the money,” Tomlinson said on 1090-AM in San Diego. “I love the game of football. It’s all about being happy. Being happy and enjoying playing. That’s the most important part to me. Also being happy and chasing that Super Bowl.”

Changes in offensive philosophy, namely the reduction of running plays called by coach Norv Turner to emphasize the passing game, made last season frustrating for Tomlinson, who rushed for 730 yards on 223 carries, the least productive season of his career. Previously, he had never rushed for fewer than 1,100 yards.

Tomlinson is still under contract with the Chargers for another two years, so it would take a trade (a distinct possibility) or being waived to alter his whereabouts in 2010. A year ago, he agreed to restructure the final three years of his deal and take a pay cut. He says he won’t take another in order to stay with the Chargers.

Tomlinson, who feels he has a 1,500-yard season still left in him, was asked about where he thought he’d be next season.

“I’m not really sure,” he said. “I can see a lot of things. … I just kind of leave it open. … I spent a lot of years here and still enjoy football a lot and enjoy being around the guys in the locker room.

“I want a championship,” he added, “and I’m going to chase it.”

Only question now is, will it be in San Diego?

---

Quote:

---

He shouldn't have to take a pay cut. He's under contract for another two years. Nobody forced the Chargers to offer him the deal that they did.

---

Quote:

---

* One, he was not happy playing for the Chargers last season.
* Two, he wants to return to San Diego, the place he has called home since being drafted in 2002.
* Three, if he does return to the Chargers, it won’t come at a reduced rate.

“It’s never been about the money,” Tomlinson said on 1090-AM in San Diego.

---

..Something dosent add up here

Quote:

---

(note: I expect CJ Spiller to be taken by Seattle...really hoping at #6 to drop someone to us, but most likely at #14)

---

Quote:

---

Tomlinson is washed up. I know he's washed up.

---

I know differently.

I've watched the Chargers a bunch over the last two years. Tomlinson isn't the same guy he was three years ago, but he's not the washed-up bum many think he is.

The Chargers have two legitimate offensive linemen who can run block, and three bums who can't.

People absolutely knew Lewis was washed up three years ago in Baltimore, and three years ago I'd noted how poorly their line was blocking. He wasn't the same guy that ran for 2000 yards in a season, but he wasn't finished. He came here and played behind a solid line, and suddenly he wasn't washed-up anymore.

The difference between Lewis of 2007 and Tomlinson of 2010 is that LT isn't the one-dimensional back that Lewis has been for years. He's an elite blocker from the RB position, and even if he's lost half-a-step, he hasn't suddenly forgotten how to catch the ball. Remember that those are the same hands which caught no less than 50 balls a year between 2001 and 2008.

As a split-carries guy he brings great value to any team.

I'd made this same argument a month-or-so ago, making sure to warn people to keep an eye on this situation. Well, it looks like LT is going to take the same route that so many great backs have taken when their run as Grand Poobah's on their specific teams has ended.

Most backs in his situation have to move on to be reinvigorated. They go from being the "old guy who doesn't have it anymore" to being "the new guy that brings so much experience and ability to our situation."

We need a back to pair with Harrison. LT would be the perfect guy.

Quote:

---

This year, as a split carry back, he averaged 3.3 yards per carry. Yes, it was behind an average offensive line.

---

Quote:

---

I always thought the world of LT.. Great player and by all accounts a solid guy off the field as well,,

But I think I'd like to see what we have in Davis... I think we know what we have in Harrison.. Virturally every time we've given him the carries, he's come through for us.., I'd like to see that continue.. if Davis is real,, then I just don't think spending money on LT,, done or not, is worth it. JMO however.

---

Quote:

---

Tomlinson's reasoning for wanting to play don't really match up.

1. He doesn't want reduced pay. But also doesn't care about money.

---

This begins to go down the psychological aspect of humanity, involving traits such as pride and desire.

He doesn't care about money. I believe him, in respect to feeling as though he has to earn more to have enough to last. So how could he not care about money, yet care about money?

The answer is pride. Taking a paycut represents not a loss of money, but a self-perceived loss of respect.

LT, like many players in his position, feel as though they've earned the extra money not because they are producing like they have in the past, but because they feel they've earned it for services rendered to the organization.

So in this regard LT is telling the truth when he says he both does and does not care about money. Many athletes aren't articulate enough or honest enough to express it well-enough.

Quote:

---

2. He wants to win a Super Bowl. But it also seems like he wants to be an every down back. Any team that has Tomlinson as an every down back probably won't be competing for any Super Bowl

---

I doubt he'd be so selfish as to come right out and say his line isn't very good at run-blocking. That would be wrong on numerous levels, and he doesn't strike me as that kind of person. Besides, what's wrong with wanting both? Many feel that he isn't a feature-back anymore, but undoubtedly there are some that do, and of course he himself feels that he can still be a full-time back. I think he'd be more effective than several starters currently in the league, even in his current condition of not being the same guy he was two years ago when he had "only" 2300 carries, hehe.

Quote:

---

Also, another point. When Marcus Allen was done playing his 16 year career he had 3,022 carries. Only 142 more than Tomlinson has right now after only 9 seasons.

---

While true, one could argue that the level of physical fitness some 14 years later is much better than it was then, while also noting how much younger LT is in terms of age. If Allen was still capable of contributing at his advanced stage in his career, then LT can as well.

I don't feel that LT can be what he was, or even that he's a decent gamble as a full-time starter. However, as a guy who can take 100 carries a year and be a rock as a 3rd down back? Yeah, I think he easily has that in him.

We've both had our opinion. I won't keep on just repeating myself. What I will do is say the same thing I stated when Lewis was leaving the Rats:

The player isn't the same guy he was, but he's still good. He played behind a bad line making him look worse. On a different team, you'll see a different player, a player who'll remind everyone of a guy who looked eerily similar to him but in different colors.

Quote:

---

I wonder in 10 years what NFL contracts will be like.

They just keep getting bigger, and at no point do I see a way for it to stop, or even level off.

Mannings ganna be a 15-20 mil A YEAR guy soon, peppers just made what 16 this year?

Eventually it has to stop inflating, right?

I understand LT thinks he's worth a bazillion dollars, that's the problem with sports in general.

---

Quote:

---

If his desire is to win a Super Bowl, then a team like the Eagles or Texans is more appealing than we are. If the desire is to walk into a situation where he stands a good chance of taking over the lion's share of the carries, well, Harrison isn't exactly going to be considered the best or most reliable starter in the league.

---

Quote:

---

LT finally faces reality: He's gone
Posted by Evan Silva on February 4, 2010 5:17 PM ET
In a Thursday interview with the San Diego Union-Tribune, Chargers RB LaDainian Tomlinson acknowledged the inevitable.

He's played his last down as a Charger.

"I'm not coming back," Tomlinson said. "I've accepted it."

LT's release will likely take place between March 1st and 4th. His $2 million roster bonus is due on the 5th.

"It's a mixed feeling," Tomlinson said when asked his thoughts on being released by the team he's played his whole career for. "It's mixed emotions. I've spent nine years of my life here, pretty much my youth. I gave the organization everything I have. But there is a part I won't miss. The football part is fun. But the business part sucks. I won't miss that."

Tomlinson will close out his Chargers career with 12,490 rushing yards, the eighth most in league history, and 153 all-purpose touchdowns.

Going on age 31 and coming off a season in which he averaged 3.27 yards per carry, though, his free agent stock will be very limited.

-PFT

---