Philip Rivers Fan Site

I really thought the San Diego Chargers would add some help to the offensive line in the 2008 NFL Draft. Philip Rivers needs to be protected. He’s not the most mobile quarterback in the world. The Chargers did add an offensive tackle to their roster, but he wasn’t picked until the 7th round and might not even make the active roster.

Their first round pick was the cornerback Cason out of Arizona. In rounds 3 and 5 they added two players to help improve the ground attack, Jacob Hester out of LSU and Marcus Thomas from Texas- El Paso. You can view the entire Chargers draft at NFL.com.

After their first two picks, the Chargers didn’t really add much, but that’s OK I suppose. They are one of the best teams in the AFC and were just a player or two away from the Superbowl. Maybe Cason is that guy. It’s too bad he doesn’t play on offense.

The NFL Draft is coming up in a couple of weeks. The Chargers have the 27th pick in the draft. A lot of experts have the Chargers looking to go offense in the first round. Experts believe Philip Rivers doesn’t have enough support on the offensive line. The right tackle position is where they will target. According to WalterFootball.com, the Chargers will select Gosder Cherilus, OT, out of Boston College. Here’s their write up.

Two possibilities here. The Chargers will draft either Gosder Cherilus as an upgrade at right tackle, or Kenny Phillips. Phillips would be a nice addition next to Eric Weddle, but the fact remains San Diego recently cut Shane Olivea and now has nothing but Jeromey Clary at right tackle. Philip Rivers, despite his knack for yelling at fans in the stands, deserves better protection. I believe the Chargers could trade down - most likely with the Falcons, who may wish to move up to secure Brian Brohm, should he be available. San Diego doesn’t pick again until Round 5. It needs to recoup as many selections as possible.

I thought it would be fun to track how Philip Rivers moves up (or down) fantasy football draft boards. We’re about a month away from the NFL Draft and about 5 months away from when most Fantasy Football Leagues hold their drafts.

To conduct this study I’m going to use AntSports average draft position tool. Currently, they have Rivers ranked as the 16th best fantasy quarterback…much further from where he was last year. Heading into last year’s fantasy drafts, Rivers was top 10 material. Now he’s behind the likes of Vince Young.

I think as Rivers health goes towards 100% and the Chris Chambers hype resurfaces, Rivers will surge up the fantasy boards to right around that 10 or 11 spot.

The Chargers are only like 2 months off their playoff loss to the Patriots, but Philip Rivers is freaking ready to go. Here’s what he recently had to say:

“I would be totally shocked if I’m not ready for training camp,” said Philip Rivers, who is spending part of his offseason with his parents in Alabama. “Obviously I will be wearing a brace on that knee all year long. Other than the brace, if you come to watch practice the first day of training camp, this is my opinion: I’d be shocked if you could say. “Aw, he looks a little off, he looks a little different.’

“So I expect to be rolling at training camp.”

That’s great news. Philip is confident he’ll be back and 100% for training camp. He’s a big part of the Chargers success, so any setbacks would really hurt them.

The Chargers made a great move today by bringing back veteran Billy Volek to remain backup to Philip Rivers. We know Rivers is going to be rehabbing that knee all summer. It’s a great move to bring someone back who knows the system and has proven he can play. Remember Volek came in during that Indianapolic playoff game and helped the Chargers advance to the AFC Championship game?

Volek is a star, but the Chargers needed that insurance in case Rivers isn’t ready to go come August/September. I think Rivers will be fine, but you never know when a setback might happen. It’s best to be safe and prepared in case Philip’s knee isn’t the same.

Volek was signed to a 3 year deal (undisclosed amount), but probably around $7 million.