The contract stalemate between the Chargers and No. 3 overall pick Joey Bosa is centered around offset language and payout structure, and Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune adds a few more specifics to the dispute, reporting that Bosa and his camp want the entirety of his ~$17MM signing bonus to be paid in 2016. San Diego, meanwhile, prefers to pay a “significant portion” of the bonus next March.
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The Chargers’ offer to Bosa is similar in nature to the deal signed between the Cowboys and fourth overall pick Ezekiel Elliott, according to Acee. Elliott will receive roughly 61% of his signing bonus during this calendar year, so using the same structure, San Diego wants to delay about $6.6MM of Bosa’s signing bonus until next March. Bosa’s agent Todd France, meanwhile, made clear last month that that structure is unacceptable.
The two sides still disagree on offset language, per Acee, as Bosa wants some sort of compensation — namely, his prefered bonus payout schedule — as a reward for agreeing to negate his fourth-year guarantee if he’s released by the Chargers and signs with a new club. So while offsets aren’t a key sticking point in talks, they are inextricably linked to the structure negotiations.
Bosa, who is now the only rookie who remains unsigned after Joshua Garnett reached a deal with the 49ers this morning, did not report to training camp yesterday, but general manager Tom Telesco indicated that the Chargers will stand by their contract approach in the name of precedent. Head coach Mike McCoy also told reporters today, including Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com, that Bosa “needs to be here” in order to get comfortable with the club’s playbook.
Photo courtesy of Pro Football Rumors on Instagram.
stop being greedy, kid who has never played an NFL snap.
I thought all 1st rounders were slotted into a fixed salary and could not negotiate.
Imagine how embarrassing it would be for him, if he turns out to be a huge bust.
So many past rookies who held out were busts. Bosa is a total d-bag for doing this. If he didn’t like the way rookie contracts were set up, he shouldn’t of entered the draft.
Well that’s why he wants the 4th year guaranteed. 🙂
If you ask me they should cut there loses and send a message to these ungrateful ass kids. Just like getting a divorce. Never took a single snap. I think he is way overrated from start.
Like his father did for only 3 years in Miami
I’m a chargers fan and I agree that he’s a massive tool. He better show he can play and not be another big mistake draft pick like a former qb drafted after Peyton Manning ….not saying his name
Bosa better play like the second coming of JJ Watt to warrant all these headlines. Knowing his reputation as a partier, it sounds like he wants to get paid as much as possible upfront so he doesn’t have to worry about losing money if (or when) he screws up. I imagine the veterans on the Chargers hate this…expecting to get paid the big bucks before proving his worth. Even if him and the Chargers agree to a deal, he’s going to have to play his tail off to fix his reputation.
Get to camp Bosa, Deandre Hopkins ended his holdout after ONE DAY and he’s a proven player at the NFL level, thanks!