Eric Weddle will continue – and likely finish – his career in the place we knew he would.

Where he was most wanted.

Being valued, that was the crucial element in the courtship between the Baltimore Ravens and their new safety.

“They were the first offer,” Weddle said. “Just the way they went about it. There is a reason why they’re the Ravens – the culture, the winning – it just showed throughout the whole process.”


“They were adamant about what they thought about me, what I bring, how I could help on and off the field. … At the end of the day, it was just their continued effort. And it wasn’t just the contract stuff. It was what they said, what they thought, how we talked. They just showed me they want me.”

See, to play safety in the NFL for a decade, and to be among the best to do so for so much of that time, without being all that big or all that fast, relatively speaking, you have to wear your pride on your shoulder pads.

The Ravens landed Weddle – over the Dallas Cowboys, Oakland Raiders and Pittsburgh Steelers – on Monday with a four-year contract worth a potential $29 million and including $13 million virtually guaranteed.

It was pretty much as simple as the one-sentence text he sent Monday morning:


“I couldn’t be more excited and pumped to be a part of a championship organization who wanted me from Day One,” he wrote.

1 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle celebrates after a win over the Chiefs in 2011. (K.C. Alfred) 2 / 39 The San Diego Chargers 2007 top draft picks from left are, Craig Davis from LSU, Eric Weddle from Utah, and Anthony Waters from Clemson, shown at Chargers Park on April, Feb. 29, 2007. (K.C. Alfred) 3 / 39 Eric Weddle of the San Diego Chargers forces Sage Rsenfels of the Houston Texans to throw away the ball in 2007. (K.C. Alfred) 4 / 39 Eric Weddle of the San Diego Chargers tips a pass intended for Derrick Mason of the Baltimore Ravens on November 25, 2007. (K.C. Alfred) 5 / 39 Chargers Luis Castillo celebrates with Eric Weddle after a sack of Raiders JaMarcus Russell on Sunday, Sept. 28, 2008. (K.C. Alfred) 6 / 39 Eric Weddle of the San Diego Chargers intercepts a pass against the Indianapolis Colts on January 13, 2008 at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis. (K.C. Alfred) 7 / 39 Portrait of Eric Weddle of the San Diego Chargers on April 4, 2007, in San Diego, California. (K.C. Alfred) 8 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle runs back a 4th quarter interception for a touchdown against Miami in 2009. (K.C. Alfred) 9 / 39 San Diego Chargers draftee Eric Weddle moves into his San Diego home on Tuesday, June 12, 2007. (K.C. Alfred) 10 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle signs autographs after practice in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 11 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle celebrates after an interception against Miami in the 4th quarter in 2011. (K.C. Alfred) 12 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle and Jets LaDainian Tomlinson talk after the Jets beat the Chargers in 2011. (K.C. Alfred) 13 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle hits Bears Earl Bennett to keep him from scoring in the 2nd quarter at Soldier Field on Sunday, Nov. 20, 2011. (K.C. Alfred) 14 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle (32) celebrates with Steve Gregory who intercepted a pass and returned it for a touchdown against the Bills in 2011. (K.C. Alfred) 15 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle swings his daughter Brooklyn, 4, at his home on Monday, Jan. 9, 2012. (K.C. Alfred) 16 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle runs an interception by Chiefs quarterback Matt Cassel in the 1st quarter on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012. (K.C. Alfred) 17 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle runs out of the tunnel before the Bengals game on Sunday, Dec. 2, 2012. (K.C. Alfred) 18 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle is introduced before a game against the Seahawks in 2013. (K.C. Alfred) 19 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle gets ready to take the field against the Jets in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 20 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle takes the field against the Jets in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 21 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle during a break against the Jets in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 22 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle celebrates with fans after a win against the Jets in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 23 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle celebrates after a 13-6 win over the Raiders with Marcus Gilchrist in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 24 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle greets fans after a win over the Raiders in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 25 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle (32), leads a prayer with Steve Williams and defensive backs before a game against Jacksonville in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 26 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle is introduced against Jacksonville in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 27 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle makes an interception against Jacksonville in the 4th quarter in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 28 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle celebrates an interception against Jacksonville in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 29 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle is introduced against the Dallas Cowboys in 2015. (K.C. Alfred) 30 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle celebrates with fans after a 30-27 win over the Browns in 2015. (K.C. Alfred) 31 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle stops Steelers Le’Veon Bell in 2015. (K.C. Alfred) 32 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle and Philip Rivers celebrate win over 49ers in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 33 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle waits for a play during the Rams game in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 34 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle is introduced at Qualcomm Stadium before a Chargers game against the Lions in 2015. (K.C. Alfred) 35 / 39 Patriots Tom Brady talks with Chargers Eric Weddle after a game in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 36 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle celebrates with fans after a game against the Rams in 2014. (K.C. Alfred) 37 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle takes the field against the Dallas Cowboys in 2015. (K.C. Alfred) 38 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle takes photos with fans after a 30-14 win over Miami at Qualcomm Stadium in 2015. (K.C. Alfred) 39 / 39 Chargers Eric Weddle watches from the sideline during his last game playing as a Charger in Oakland. (K.C. Alfred)

Weddle is talented and smart, for sure. Moreover, though, he has twice been a first-team All-Pro and has played in three Pro Bowls because he believes he is that good.

His employers better believe the same. That’s just how it is with Weddle. There are no two sides with him. You get everything he has, you must reciprocate with the same fervor.


The Chargers did not. They decided, for all intents and purpose, in 2015 to move on from Weddle in 2016.

The Chargers’ second-round pick in 2007, Weddle turned 31 the day after last season’s finale. He has played a lot of snaps – a higher combined percentage of defense and special teams snaps, in fact, than anyone in the NFL over the past five seasons. Just because this season featured his first three missed starts since 2009 doesn’t mean he hasn’t been banged up.

The Chargers projected diminishing returns.

The Ravens, conversely, will pay Weddle $9 million this season between a $7 million signing bonus, $1 million roster bonus (both to be payed within the next 31 days) and a $1 million base salary. The $9 million total will make Weddle the second-highest paid safety in 2016 behind Kansas City’s Eric Berry, who is scheduled to make $10.8 million on the one-year contract he got as the Chiefs’ franchise player.


Money talks in the NFL. That kind of money says loud and clear, “We really believe you have some excellence left in you.”

It’s a hug and a fist bump and a pat on the backside. It was speaking Weddle’s language.

“You think of Baltimore, you think of winning, you think defense, you think blue collar, grinding, guys working together,” said Weddle, who will be introduced in Baltimore on Wednesday. “That’s what I’m all about … When I went to bed (Sunday) night and I was trying to decide which team, Baltimore just kept popping in my head. When it comes down to it, my heart was there.”

So after starting all but six games at free safety over the past eight seasons, his time as a Charger is officially complete.


It did not end well. That is certainly part of Weddle’s legacy. He was deliberate Monday in talking about missing his teammates and San Diego fans and the fond memories of victories. That’s all. He’s ready to move on.

The Chargers, privately citing concerns over his continued durability, declined to engage in contract talks last offseason. Weddle sat out the team’s offseason workouts as a form of protest.

After joining the team for minicamp and reporting to training camp, Weddle was as engaged as ever. He and head coach Mike McCoy, who had called Weddle out for not being present during offseason workouts, patched up their relationship.

Weddle started the season’s first six games before injuring his groin at Green Bay and sitting out the next two weeks. He returned to play the next seven games but aggravated the injury Dec. 24 at Oakland.


The Chargers placed him on injured reserve for the season finale. Weddle insisted he should have been given a chance to show he was capable of playing. He even ran sprints on the sideline during one practice that week. Weddle also said the Chargers declined to allow him to travel with the team to Denver for that game.

So furious was Weddle the week he was placed on IR that he allowed his agent to go public with details of a $10,000 fine the Chargers had levied on Weddle the previous week for his remaining on the field during halftime of their Dec. 20 game to watch his daughter dance as a part of the Junior Charger Girls.

But that ending was the merely the conclusion.

Despite his acknowledgment earlier in December that he was unsure he could leave Philip Rivers and other teammates and was open to staying in San Diego, where he and his family are building a home and will continue to live full-time when he retires, Weddle knew the Chargers didn’t value him enough for the relationship to continue.


So he found a team that did.