After Officially Moving on from Rivers, Chargers’ Super Bowl Odds Tank

• The Los Angeles Chargers and Philip Rivers have mutually agreed to part ways
• The Chargers Super Bowl odds have gone from +1350 down to +3500
• There are lots of veteran quarterback possibilities for the Chargers like Andy Dalton, Jameis Winston and possibly Cam Newton

The Los Angeles Chargers have made it official: they are moving on from Philip Rivers. As a result, their Super Bowl 55 odds have tanked as they’ve gone from +1350 down to +3500. With plenty of good quarterbacks on the market, maybe they can upgrade at the position. That begs the question: is this an overreaction?

Super Bowl 55 Odds

Odds taken Feb. 10

Chargers Cut Ties With Rivers

We all knew it was coming but on Monday, it became official that Rivers is heading into free agency. Rivers had previously moved his family across the country to the state of Florida and we had heard reports that the Chargers want to go in a different direction. That’s not what is the surprise here.

What is a bit puzzling is the fact that the Chargers Super Bowl odds sat at +1600 as we all knew and expected Rivers to be gone. Now that he is, their odds have dropped to +3500. Isn’t that a bit bizarre?

How Do the Chargers Replace Rivers?

The Chargers have a number of directions they can go but as of right now, veteran Tyrod Taylor is the odds-on favorite to be the starter in Week 1 2020. If he’s in fact the starter, then the odds of +3500 make sense. If the Chargers plan on finding an upgrade, we know their odds can climb as high as +1600.

The biggest rumor out there has been that the Chargers would sign Tom Brady. We don’t know if Brady is planning on leaving but he’ll soon hit free agency. The Chargers offer him a good combination of being in a big market where he can earn big endorsement deals while also having a shot to win a ring in 2020.

The Chargers also have a number of other options from using their first-round pick to draft someone like Tua Tagovailoa or Justin Herbert, to signing someone like Andy Dalton or Jameis Winston, who will probably also be free agents. Those players could keep this team in contention. Remember, they were 12-4 two seasons ago and won a playoff game.

What’s the Best Bet?

At +1600, I was so perplexed as to why the Chargers were so high up the ladder in terms of the NFL futures. At this point, it seems like there might be some value.

In my eyes, there’s only one player who makes this team a Super Bowl contender to the point where I’d consider betting them and that’s Tom Brady. Even so, you have to remember that the Chargers have a bad offensive line and their coaching staff is a big question mark.

We also don’t know how much Brady has left in the tank. He struggled in the second half of the season and really didn’t look so hot. He’ll be a year older now in a new regime and a new offense. He becomes a question mark as well.

But absent of Brady’s arrival, I don’t see anyone else here who really moves the needle. Maybe someone like Dalton keeps them around double-digit wins (as they were two years ago) but I don’t see him as a player who takes them to the next level.

For now, I’d pass on the Chargers futures. There are better bets on the board at this price range. Teams like the Minnesota Vikings, Tennessee Titans and Buffalo Bills are all in this price range and were all playoff teams last year. I’d bet any of them before I’d bet the Chargers at this point.