Los Angeles Chargers can afford to extend Joey Bosa and Melvin Gordon

While the main focus for the Los Angeles Chargers right now is the upcoming season, there certainly are some contractual questions to be answered.

It is easy to get excited about the upcoming Los Angeles Chargers season. The Chargers have one of the most complete and well-rounded rosters in the NFL and have the American Sweetheart potential this year with Philip Rivers and the franchise chasing their first Super Bowl ring.

The last thing Charger fans should do in June is get ahead of themselves, though. We have all seen what the Chargers have done in the past and while the team the best chance it has had since going 14-2, there is still a lot of football to be played.

A lot of fans are focusing with anticipation on the upcoming season. As a result, possible contract extensions for both Joey Bosa and Melvin Gordon have taken a backseat. While the organization is certainly aware, the fanbase is more focused on 2019.

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There is nothing wrong with that but it is a discussion worth having. Both Bosa and Gordon play huge roles on this team and there is an argument against signing both to an extension. While in most cases I would agree with said argument, the Chargers actually have space and should be persistent in signing the two to extensions.

Bosa is in the fourth year of his rookie contract and will have the fifth year exercised, which will carry a $14.36 million cap hit. He is not as big of an immediate need as Gordon, but his extension is right around the corner and this year is the year to start laying that groundwork.

Gordon is in the fifth year of his rookie contract and will be an unrestricted free agent after the season. The Chargers might be leaning on franchise tagging him for one season, but the team would be running the risk of having another Le’Veon Bell situation on their hands.

The case for not extending both is simple. First of all, both have had several injuries and there is always worry about extending a player that is possibly injury-prone. That makes sense.

In Bosa’s case, he was already not easy to negotiate with when it came to signing his rookie contract and that might bleed into extension negotiations.

He has never seemed like the kind of player that necessarily loves the Los Angeles Chargers, so it could either be a money thing or wanting to play with his brother Nick in San Francisco. All of those factors would drive up the price.

In Gordon’s case, he is a running back. With being a running back comes the stigma of offering a contract extension. We saw the entire fiasco that was Bell’s situation and Todd Gurley is already having knee issues after signing his massive extension.

Cap space is so valuable and running back might be the easiest position to fill in the league. While there is a massive difference between someone like Gordon and a mid-tier back, it is not hard to find said mid-tier back that can do enough to win.

But with Philip Rivers’ contract expiring this year and him likely not getting a massive contract again, the Chargers are going to be able to afford these contracts. They do have some other big contracts in Russell Okung and Melvin Ingram, but those both end at the same as Bosa’s extension would kick in.

Rivers is also at a point in his career where winning means the most. Therefore, knowing that Gordon and Bosa give him the best shot of winning, he might take a slight pay cut, as Tom Brady does. Although Rivers does not have an extremely rich supermodel wife.

Next. Rivers is a legitimate MVP candidate. dark

Regardless, the Los Angeles Chargers have done a good job with the cap and have given themselves the gracious position of being able to offer extensions. It would be a shame to waste that opportunity.

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