Los Angeles Chargers: Tyrod Taylor is not a viable starting option

The Los Angeles Chargers are entering a new era at the quarterback position and there is the possibility of Tyrod Taylor getting the starting nod.

For the first time since the 2005 season, there will be someone not named Philip Rivers starting under center for the Los Angeles Chargers. Rivers has been the Chargers’ starting quarterback since 2006, has never missed a start and has now mutually agreed to part ways with the only franchise that he has known.

Charger fans certainly saw this coming. After one of the best seasons of his career in 2018, Rivers was not great in 2019. His tendency to turn the ball over is what killed the Chargers, who were above average in both offensive yards gained and defensive yards allowed.

The Chargers were absolutely talented enough in 2019 to be a playoff team but Rivers’ 20 interceptions were the main component of the team’s turnover problem. That, mixed with some bad luck, resulted in 11 losses for the Chargers.

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Now the Chargers have to turn to new options and there are multiple routes to take. There are established options in both free agency and the trade market if the team wants to get an experienced quarterback, or, more likely, the team will turn to the 2020 NFL Draft and select a quarterback with the sixth-overall pick.

There is another option for the 2020 season, however, that will turn to someone already on the roster: Tyrod Taylor. Anthony Lynn stated that Taylor is going to get a chance to earn the starting spot in 2020, which has Charger fans split.

On one hand, he is a former starting quarterback that led the Buffalo Bills to the playoffs for the first time this century. On the other hand, he is not as exciting as some of the other names that are potentially available, whether it be experienced quarterbacks or in the draft.

And even if Taylor were to start in 2020, he is not the long-term option. This very well could be a case of him starting over a rookie quarterback, similar to what he did with the Cleveland Browns and Baker Mayfield, as a bridge quarterback as the Chargers enter this new era.

That sounds all fine and dandy and works on paper, but the Chargers should not turn to that route. The team would get the same benefit of Taylor being a veteran if he started versus if he was on the bench and would be falling into a trap of starting him.

Taylor is not a viable starting quarterback, period. Just look at how the situation unfolded in Cleveland. Taylor only got three starts and it was Baker Mayfield who came into the game to give the Browns their first win in 22 months.

Taylor never got the starting job back and Mayfield led the Browns to a 7-8-1 record, going 7-7 in games that he played.

Sure, Taylor led the Bills to the playoffs in 2017 for the first time since 1999 but it is not like that Bills team was all that impressive. Let’s not forget that Taylor actually got benched that season for Nathan Peterman, who had his now-infamous five-interception game against the very same Los Angeles Chargers.

Taylor was fine, but he certainly was not one of the 15 best quarterbacks in the league, maybe not even one of the 20 best.

The one thing working in Taylor’s favor is that he does not turn the ball over a lot, which might be why the Chargers are considering him, to begin with. Taylor has the same number of interceptions (20) in 46 career starts as Rivers had in 2019 alone.

However, the Los Angeles Chargers still have a talented core that is good enough to make the playoffs and I am not sure that Taylor is capable of leading them there. Tua Tagovailoa would be a better option than Taylor in his rookie season, you could even make the case for Justin Herbert being a better option.

Next. First mock draft without Philip Rivers. dark

Chances are if the Chargers go with Tyrod Taylor as their starter then he will eventually get bumped from the job and the rookie quarterback that takes over will be better. Then, we will be left asking what would have happened if the rookie would have just started all 16 games.

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