As the Vikings prepare to host the Chargers for the first NFL game played at U.S. Bank Stadium, the visiting team won’t have its first-round draft pick. And surely there will be plenty said during the FOX broadcast about holdout defensive end Joey Bosa.
Plenty of things said about Bosa have been aimed at pressuring him to cave. “What’s the big deal?” they say. “They’re not arguing over significant dollars. He should just take the money. Does he not want to play for the Chargers?”
Veteran defensive end Dwight Freeney, who played at one point for the Chargers and now is a member of the Falcons, recently turned that argument around in a visit to XTRA Sports 1360.
“Guys, if you sign a player he should get his bonus, get his money, and let’s go play,” Freeney told The Mark and Rich Show (via the San Diego Union-Tribune). “But if you’re trying to defer the signing bonus to 2017 so the kid doesn’t have the money so the team holds onto the money just so he can get more interest on it, or whatever. . . . Guys, you’re a two billion dollar franchise, OK? Give him his money and let’s just go.”
Indeed. What’s the big deal? They’re not arguing over significant dollars. The team should just pay Bosa the money. Do the Chargers not want him to play for them?
Actually, the two sides should find a way to compromise. There’s surely a middle ground that allows everyone to both proclaim victory and save face. For whatever reason, neither side is willing at this point to try to take the high road. Which means that Bosa eventually could be back on the path to the draft.