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Chargers Daily Links, 1/29: Tom Brady news and rumors roundup

Wild Card Round - Tennessee Titans v New England Patriots Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

As far as I can remember, something like this has never happened.

Tom Brady is a free agent. Drew Brees is a free agent. Philip Rivers is a free agent. Jameis Winston is a free agent. Ryan Tannehill is a free agent. Marcus Mariota is a free agent. Teddy Bridgewater is a free agent.

A.J. McCarron is a free agent. Remember when McCarron was about to enter free agency a few years ago and all the buzz was how he could get Brock Osweiler money? Remember Brock Osweiler money??? Quarterbacks of starting, franchise caliber never used to hit free agency. They’d be locked in at least a year before that happened or there was no doubt about their return. There are doubts about Brady, Rivers, Winston. In some cases, that’s what the franchise tag is for. In others, it seems like teams are now more willing and understanding to the concept that not only can you win with a cheaper quarterback.

It may in fact be one of the biggest advantages in a salary capped world.

Here’s some news on Tom Brady.

Rob Gronkowski expects Tom Brady to explore his options - PFT

Like just another pair of football fans hanging out, Rob Gronkowski and Jimmy Johnson discussed Tom Brady‘s future on Monday night. Except Gronkowski has more insight into Brady than most.

“Gronkowski and I were talking about it last night,” Johnson said Tuesday during the Fox Sports news conference. “He thinks he’s going to explore his options. I personally think he’ll stay right there in New England. I don’t know, though.”

Here’s Latest From Jay Glazer On Tom Brady’s Impending Free Agency - NESN

“I can’t figure it out, because I think there’s time,” Glazer told NESN.com Tuesday during FOX’s pre-Super Bowl LIV media availability. “I don’t know if he’s going to give them a hometown discount now, but I think if — look, the Patriots obviously have the power to keep him there, but the checkbook and whether he wants to leave — look, change is hard for a lot of people. And I think what happens now is everybody has their two cents, trying to give him an opinion, and his mind is probably going to change a million times.

The hot quarterback rumors have nothing to do with Tom Brady right now - NY Post

While Brees remains uncertain about his future, the Saints have a plan in mind. They want Brees to return for one season to be used in a transition role to pass the torch to backup Taysom Hill, whom they believe to be their next franchise quarterback. This thinking could potentially lead Teddy Bridgewater, the Saints’ more traditional backup quarterback, to testing the free-agency market.

Charlie Weis on OMF: Why is Tom Brady a free agent? - WEEI

“Let’s look at this logically for a second, logically, like I just read an article this morning that (Joe) Montana recommended Brady stay in New England. Now here’s a guy who left (San Francisco) and went to Kansas City. That was his recommendation,” Weis said. ”Everyone in New England and everyone who roots for the Pats, like me, would like this to end with Tommy in New England. I would like this to end with him in there, you guys would like it, Mr. Kraft would like it, and I am sure the team would like it. But, I have one rhetorical question to ask you: why is he a free agent?”

Joe Montana’s Advice to Tom Brady on Free Agency: Don’t Leave Patriots - SI

“Don’t–if you don’t have to. It’s a process to go through, and it takes time to get used to the team. I was fortunate because [former 49ers quarterbacks coach] Paul Hackett was there running the offense, and so I was pretty familiar with probably three-quarters of the offense going in,” Montana said. “And, if they let [Brady] have his own offense [with a new team], yeah, that makes it a little bit easier. But still, the transition of moving ...

”I just can’t see how they would let him leave there, myself.”

Tom Brady’s former top target disinterested with QB’s future - WEEI

Former Patriots receiver and current first-year San Francisco wide receivers coach Wes Welker was asked at Super Bowl Opening Night if he was curious where Brady would play next year and according to the Boston Globe the guy who redefined the slot receiver position in the Patriots’ offense hasn’t really gotten caught up in the hoopla.

“Not really,” Welker said.

Ex-Chargers LB Donnie Edwards wins 2019 Salute to Service Award - ESPN

Former linebacker Donnie Edwards is the recipient of the NFL’s 2019 Salute to Service Award.

The award was created to acknowledge the exceptional efforts by members of the NFL community to honor and support members of the military community. Edwards will be recognized Saturday night at NFL Honors, when The Associated Press presents its individual league awards.

AJ Smith, Kyle Smith, the 2020 Draft, and Beyond - Hogs Haven

In 2003, AJ Smith was chosen as the General Manager for the San Diego Chargers and promptly built a team that, from 2004 to 2009 won as many division titles (5) as the league leading Colts and Patriots did during that period, and won more regular season games than all but three teams during those years. Things went south after that though, with three more years of bad drafting, inactivity in the trade market, and an over reliance on free agency. He was ultimately fired, along with Head Coach Norv Turner, at the end of the 2012 season (and hired by the Redskins).

It’s Super Bowl Week, So of Course There’s Buzz on the Veteran QB Market - SI

Another day, more buzz on the veteran quarterback market. The Chargers are one of three teams (along with the Titans and Bucs) that have decisions to make on whether or not to franchise their veteran quarterbacks. The tag is expected to come in at around $27 million for 2020, and the calls by those three teams promise to have a serious ripple effect. In L.A.’s case, it’s a heavy price for Philip Rivers—a quarterback who has a lot of equity built up with the team but was inconsistent last year to the point where benching him was discussed. And obviously, the price tag could be prohibitive for players like Ryan Tannehill and Jameis Winston. Or each team could use the tag to maintain continuity at the position, and buy a year to find another answer. Either way, we’ll know more before March 10.

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