Rivers leaks picks but insists results are just random


If there are other factors in this equation, Philip Rivers is not the type to point them out. If he’s ever criticized a teammate for a poorly run route or a dropped ball, he has done so behind closed doors and, presumably, with nonconfrontational euphemisms. Publicly, he is Pollyanna, a quarterback who is quick to overpraise his teammates and inclined to find fault only with himself.

Some of this goes with the territory — with the quarterback’s leadership role and his outsize salary — but not all of the position’s practitioners are so polite. Chicago’s Jay Cutler, for example, is notorious for his lack of diplomacy and bad body language.

That Rivers rarely deviates from the high road helps explain the high regard of his teammates, but it makes his struggles that much more mysterious. He would have us think that his leakage has no specific source and, in turn, no antidote.

“I’m not frustrated one bit,” Rivers said. ”I’m excited about the next challenge. When you prepare and you study and you go and play as hard as you can, you can be disappointed. You never can be satisfied. (But) you’ve got to move on to the next day. I couldn’t have tried any harder, (or) prepared any more.”

Later, in the locker room, Rivers continued to convey good cheer on a day when another quarterback might have been crestfallen. Despite his difficulties, the Chargers are still tied atop the AFC West. Despite his numbers, Rivers insisted there are “no variables that are different (than 2010) other than statistically I haven’t played as well.”

Despite their leaks, the Chargers are still afloat.


