Chargers want Philip Rivers and Antonio Gates to go to practice instead of going to LaDainian Tomlinson’s Hall of Fame induction

Philip Rivers spent the first seven seasons of his career with the Chargers playing with LaDainian Tomlinson. Antonio Gates spent the first six years of his career alongside the running back. So it’s unfortunate that the Chargers won’t let Rivers or Gates miss a training camp practice on Saturday to see their former teammate inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Anthony Lynn, the new head coach of the Chargers, reportedly refused to give Rivers or Gates permission to go to Canton to attend the ceremony, two sources told Alex Marvez of Sporting News.

NFL Network’s Alex Flanagan says it didn’t happen quite that way.

It’s pretty standard for teams to allow players time off to attend the Hall of Fame ceremony. Larry Fitzgerald will be there on Saturday to support his former quarterback, Kurt Warner, who is a member of the 2017 Hall of Fame class.

Rivers has been doing this since he came into the league in 2003, and Gates has been at it since he was signed by the team as an undrafted free agent in 2004. Training camp has to be pretty routine for these two veterans. Missing a single practice wouldn’t negatively impact either one of them.

Gates plans to skip practice anyway to go to Tomlinson’s induction, even though the team could fine him for it.

You’d like to think the Chargers would let it slide because it would be the right thing to do, but this is also a team that fined Eric Weddle $10,000 for watching his daughter perform during halftime of a game in 2015.

Forcing Gates and Rivers to be at practice — which will be the first one in the StubHub Center — isn’t going to make the Chargers any better this season. Any seasoned veteran could miss a training camp practice without skipping a beat. It’s shameful that the Chargers won’t allow Rivers and Gates to go support Tomlinson in this once-in-a-lifetime experience.