Defensive Lineman Joe Phillips Comes to Terms With Chargers

Joe Phillips, saying he could “go play right now,” ended a summer-long holdout Monday night by agreeing to terms with the Chargers. The only remaining unsigned Charger is running back Gary Anderson.

Phillips, 26, started all 16 regular-season games for the Chargers last year on the defensive line. He led the team with 36 quarterback hits and added two sacks.

“I don’t know if they will or not,” he said when asked if the Chargers will let him play Sunday when they open their regular season against the Raiders in the Coliseum.

Phillips said he and his agent, Steve Feldman, decided early in the day that “it was time to do it (the contract)” and they went to the Charger offices at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium with the “idea that we were going to get it done because we were both sick of it. So whatever it took to do, we did.”

Steve Ortmayer, the Chargers’ director of football operations, said Phillips will receive a two-game roster exemption from the league and won’t count on the team’s 47-man limit during that period.

Ortmayer also said he expects Phillips to actually sign the contract this morning.

Phillips said he didn’t think he got what he deserved from the Chargers.

“But they told me (last month) this was it,” he said. “They told me I could take it today or lose $7,500 a day. And they took their $7,500 a day and I came in and signed. I should have taken this deal two weeks ago.”

“They were entrenched in their position,” Feldman said. “We were entrenched in ours. What happened, happened. Everything was done with a purpose. Just because things didn’t work out correctly doesn’t mean the purpose wasn’t worth trying to get. I don’t feel relieved, I feel great.”

Phillips came to the Chargers in 1987, started and starred in all three games for the Chargers’ undefeated strike-replacement team. His play earned him a permanent position on the team.

But, like last year after a holdout, Phillips was unhappy with the final agreement. “I’d be embarrassed to tell you,” he said when asked about the dollar value of the contract.