Unlike Jackson, Charger Choices Have No Choice

Could it be that the Chargers have decided to stand pat? After all the ballyhoo about the 1986 draft, particularly what it might do for the defense, not one of the local heroes’ 17 selections has yet been signed.

That’s right. Zilch.

Of course, there is no hurry. Training camp does not open for a couple more weeks. Maybe the Chargers will set up a card table outside their UC San Diego dormitories and sign these athletes as they arrive to collect their room keys.

However, I suspect that the keys to this situation lie elsewhere.

All of the National Football League seems to be playing a mind game with the Class of ’86. The idea seems to be to sit back and wait for these players and their agents to arrive on bending knee, pleading to sign any sort of document that will give them the privilege of getting a little exercise on Sunday afternoons and Monday nights.

“Yawn,” the NFL seems to be saying. “We’re pretty well set with players. We’ll give you a few bucks if you want to wander by for a look-see, but . . . “

It does not, for example, behoove the Chargers to let it be known that they desperately need the services of defensive lineman Leslie O’Neal and offensive tackle James FitzPatrick, their first-round picks. What’s more, they picked a few other fellows down the line who might just be able to help them as well.

Basically, the NFL has gotten back to its pre-United States Football League style of doing business. Since it does not have to bid against the veritably dormant USFL, the NFL does not have to offer the contracts it has had to offer the past few years.

This is sound business, but it surely creates a distressing situation for this group of athletes who suffer from being born just a little bit too late.

You see, no matter how badly the Chargers need Messrs. O’Neal, FitzPatrick and Co., they know these fellows have nowhere else to go.

Perhaps all of these young men should follow the example of one Bo Jackson.

Bo, you recall, was the first player picked in the NFL draft, going to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He was also an “excuse me, but we may as well take a shot at him” choice by the Kansas City Royals in the fourth round of the baseball draft.

Agents with first-round NFL choices sat back and waited to see how much it would cost Tampa Bay to sign this speedster with the sculptured body. Such a work of art would cost the Bucs a bundle, and thereby set the tone for the remainder of the first-round choices.

However, Bo was not to establish a price level for NFL first-round picks. Instead, he signed a three-year contract for $1,066,000 with Kansas City, setting a rather prohibitive standard for fourth-round baseball picks.

The moral to this story is that O’Neal and FitzPatrick should approach the Chargers with alternative careers in mind. They otherwise will not stand a chance in negotiations.

O’Neal, at 6-foot 4-inches, 245 pounds, is said to be swift in the pursuit of enemy quarterbacks. The Chargers need a man with such talent, but this will not be enough to get him the bucks he is undoubtedly anticipating.

Thus, O’Neal needs a gimmick.

Chargers--”Here’s your contract, young man. Just sign right here and we’ll get you into your gear . . . “

O’Neal, scanning the figures--”Wait just a second, gentlemen. This isn’t quite as good as my other offer.”

Chargers--”Other offer? What are you talking about? This is the only league.”

O’Neal--”Oh, I’m not talking just football. You don’t think I’d come in here without another egg or two in my basket, do you?”

Chargers--”You’re bluffing . . . “

O’Neal--”Not at all. I have a real nice movie offer. The money’s as good as the numbers in this here contract. Furthermore, in movies, they hire stunt men when it gets rough and I walk away without a grass stain. I get to kiss the leading lady, and that sure beats chasing John Elway.”

Chargers--”Now Leslie . . . “

O’Neal, heading for the door--”Don’t call me, I’ll call you.”

FitzPatrick, 6-8 and 290 pounds, would be waiting in the hallway.

Chargers, still rattled by O’Neal’s departure--”Well, James, you ready to get this business behind us?”

FitzPatrick--”Depends on how what you’re offering compares.”

Chargers--”Compares?”

FitzPatrick--”A guy coming out of college has to have more than one option.”

Chargers--”You’re not thinking of the USFL, are you?”

FitzPatrick--”Naw, either NBC or the NBA. I’d like to get into television work, but I have a chance to sign a guaranteed contract as a power forward/enforcer. Either way, I can make a lot of money.”

Chargers--”Have you looked at our contract?”

FitzPatrick--”Not yet. If you don’t mind, I’ll take it with me. I’ll call you in a few days.”

Unfortunately for O’Neal and FitzPatrick, neither of these scenarios will unfold. Bo Jackson really was too special to be any kind of a trend setter. These guys, and all the others in the Class of ‘86, have no such lucrative options.

Indeed, this is not a year in which draft choices are being made to feel coveted--or even loved. An individual with two suitors will get 10 times as much attention as an individual with one. That’s the way life is.