The Chargers have confirmed that left tackle Marcus McNeill signed his one-year, $630,000 contract tender. Chargers A.J. Smith essentially “won” the staredown, although he lost his starting left tackle for the first five games of the season.
By signing his tender on Saturday, McNeill was able to travel with the team to Seattle. He will collect $440,000, a prorated version of his one-year tender. McNeill passed on signing a $3.2 million tender earlier in the offseason.
“We’re all very happy that Marcus has decided to sign his tender and go back to work,” said Smith. “He has missed some time on the job, but we will be patient, get him up to speed and Coach [Norv Turner] will decide how quickly he gets on the field.”We wouldn’t be surprised to see a long-term deal worked out at some point, but the way the entire absence was handled wound up being a lose-lose for all parties.