Despite a report from earlier this week that suggested the San Diego Chargers and Philip Rivers may not be able to come to terms on a contract ensuring they continue their NFL union before this season, thanks largely to a potential Los Angeles relocation of the franchise, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports indicates from talking to his own sources that not only is that not the case, Rivers is certain to remain in a Chargers uniform beyond this season, it's just a matter of when.
Per La Canfora, the Chargers and the 33-year-old Rivers have been hammering away at a new contract extension for "months" and that they have made "significant progress." The Chargers, per La Canfora, want to make a "sizeable commitment" to the guy who has been their franchise quarterback since the 2004 NFL Draft. Last year, Rivers threw for 4,286 yards, 31 touchdowns and 18 interceptions. While he nearly matched his career-high in INTs, Chargers GM Tom Telesco and head coach Mike McCoy clearly feel he's still the man to lead them to the Promised Land.
While Tuesday's report indicated it was "virtually certain" the Chargers and Rivers wouldn't be able to come to terms on a new deal, La Canfora indicates that it still very much remains a possibility that it gets done prior to the season, but if not, then "directly after" the Chargers' year has come to a close. Rivers said earlier this offseason that he was willing to play out the remainder of his contract and address the situation next offseason. If the Chargers can't lock him up now, they're "fully prepared" to franchise Rivers in 2016 and 2017 if need be, per La Canfora.
As for the matter of potential Los Angeles relocation, La Canfora suggested that after talking to people close to Rivers, he believes that won't be an issue where his re-signing with the team is concerned.
Any new deal signed by Rivers would likely average somewhere around $20 million per season after the extensions given to Russell Wilson and Colin Kaepernick.
