Antonio Gates tells Joey Bosa to man up, end holdout
San Diego Chargers first round pick Joey Bosa remains a holdout from training camp and tight end Antonio Gates thinks he needs to man up.
Chargers rookie Joey Bosa has still yet to show up for training camp. The third overall pick in the 2016 draft is locked in a stalemate with the team regarding issues over his contract. It is now the 12th day of the holdout and future teammate Antonio Gates has decided to weigh in on a situation similar to one he has dealt with himself.
“My advice to any player that’s going through any kind of contract situation is that, at one point, you’ve got to be a man and you’ve got to understand that you’ve got to get ready to play,” Gates said, via the San Diego Union-Tribune.
The issue at hand is that the Chargers want to break up Bosa’s signing bonus that is worth an estimated $17 million, and to include offset language in the contract.
Gates is no stranger to contract disputes and holding out of camp as he held out until August 22 in 2005, but he thinks Bosa needs to man up and join his teammates to get ready to start his career.
“Sometimes you’ve got to just, as a man, you’ve got to step in and say,”This is what it’s going to be,'” Gates said. “Because sometimes, whether or not [there is] miscommunication with the General Manager or the agent, whoever it is, at the end of the day, it’s your life, it’s your career.”
It is now a waiting game since there has been no indication of talks going on between the two sides. The most extreme scenario would include Bosa watching his $25 million rookie contact go down the drain and hold out until the 2017 draft when any team besides the Chargers could select him. Either way, the relationship between the Chargers and Bosa has gotten off to a rocky start.