Philip Rivers: "They're going to get a lot of work. It certainly is a deep position for us, and those guys all love to play and work hard. We love Melvin, but we're going to go with what we've got. It's a pretty dang good group."
Former Tennessee Titans running back Lendale White made headlines Friday when he called Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers a ‘P***y’ on Twitter for his comments regarding Chargers star running back Melvin Gordon and his ongoing training camp holdout.
Gordon, who totaled 885 rushing yards (5.1 per carry) and 490 receiving yards in just 12 games last season, is in the final year of a rookie contract that would pay him $5.6 million this season. Gordon, however, is demanding a new contract that would pay him in the $14 million range alongside the NFL's highest paid backs Todd Gurley ($14.3 million), Le’Veon Bell ($13.1 million) and David Johnson ($13.0 million).
A converstoverial Pro Football Talk tweet that paraphrased Rivers’ comments on Gordon’s holdout went viral on Friday, with former players around the league weighing in and defending Gordon.
White, who hasn’t played in the NFL since 2009, still has a notable following on Twitter that immortalizes his days as a USC Trojan, as the bulky running back starred alongside *Heisman Trophy-winning* Reggie Bush on the mid-2000’s Southern Cal teams that are considered by some to be the greatest teams in college football history.
ProFootballTalk has since acknowledged the disputed wording of their tweet that many users had complained about, who argued ProFootballTalk made Rivers' comments sound worse.
The controversy mirrors a similar one last month when Baker Mayfield commented on Browns running back Duke Johnson's holdout, which Mayfield has since been answering about ever since.
No matter the wording of the ProFootballTalk tweet, many people around the league felt like Rivers’ comments that were appearing to brush off Gordon’s training camp absence didn’t exactly better the 26-year-old’s chances at getting a raise.
Under league rules, Gordon will be fined $40,000 for every day of training camp he misses.