Philip Rivers galloped like he'd thrown a game-winner at Arrowhead Stadium. Eric Weddle hugged the Chargers quarterback like they made the playoffs. Coach Mike McCoy watched, as others on the field celebrated like a bunch of kids.

Kids they were.

Rivers and Weddle, teammates and close friends since 2007, recently began what may be their final training camp together. It follows a spring ridden with stress, uncertainty and unexpected catharsis in the form of a youth flag football league in which their sons were teammates.

Chargers safety Eric Weddle (top left) and quarterback Philip Rivers (top right) stand behind sons Gaige (left) and Gunner (right) after a flag football game in 2015. Dan Cella

Gunner Rivers, 7, played quarterback and safety.

Gaige Weddle, 6, played linebacker and running back.

As Eric Weddle skipped voluntary workouts due to a contract dispute, he volunteered to be an assistant coach. While Philip Rivers was rumored to be possibly traded on draft day, he doubled as a de facto one. Two NFL stars took turns on snack duty for a Poway team named the Chargers. And the Chargers won the county Super Bowl on the final play of an unlikely comeback.

The men had celebrated wins before.

This one, they shared with their boys.

"You have so many memories, obviously, from here and on the field," Rivers said. "We'll never forget that, your sons playing in a flag football league. It's cool. Those times are special. And I think, as you get older, too, you appreciate it more."

"It helped us remember what it's all about," Weddle said.

The other Chargers hadn't seen much of Weddle.

The All-Pro safety, seeking an extension to a contract that expires next March, rarely appeared at the team facility before a mandatory June minicamp. He met once with General Manager Tom Telesco for an April sit-down, a meeting that did not curtail Weddle's belief this season will be his last with the franchise.

Eric Weddle (center) helps coach while Philip Rivers (right) looks on during a 2015 flag-football season in which their sons were teammates.

Meanwhile, the Poway Chargers practiced every Tuesday.

Weddle was there.

"I've got to come here to the kids' practice just to see you," Rivers joked.

Truth is, Rivers had missed him. The co-captains are a mirrored image across the line of scrimmage. Both master the mental game. Both guide teammates. Both are family men. Weddle is married and a father of four; Rivers is married and a father of seven, going on eight. Any true reflection has a backward element. Rivers is an eternal optimist, and Weddle concedes himself as less of one.



But it works.

Between drills, Rivers shares what he sees on a specific play. Weddle does the same, the goal to sharpen strengths and amend weaknesses before either surface in a game. This dialogue, two Pro Bowlers at times off in the distance, has been a fabric to Chargers practices for years and, ultimately, their friendship.

Practices were lost in the spring.

In Poway, football and family remained at the friends' core, intertwined like never before.

Dan Cella admits it.

He felt some pressure.

The San Diego native is a Chargers season-ticket holder. Now, here he was, head coach of a youth team as two franchise icons looked on — and also John Beck, a CFL quarterback whose son was on the team. Cella and Weddle were friends prior to the league, but still, Cella said that he had anxiety.

It eased.

"They were supportive the whole year," Cella said.

The boys only helped.

Gunner Rivers fields the snap with Gaige Weddle in motion during an ages 5-to-6 flag football league in the spring of 2015. — Dan Cella

Gunner is polite and coachable, a quiet quarterback who, a few weeks into the season, began coming out of his shell. He showed more fire, the occasional fist bump after a big throw. The Chargers offense was advanced for an ages 5 to 6 league, but he commanded it.

Gaige is a ball of energy. He flew around at running back. On defense, he was a flag fiend, instinctively sniffing out reverse runs and chasing down ball carriers. He played every snap with emotion.

Family resemblances were clear. Both were named Pro Bowlers in the Poway division's age group.

The Chargers lost their first game, and it wasn't particularly close.

Some adjustments followed.

The team switched from a 5-1 defense to a 4-2, adding an extra safety for insurance should a linebacker miss a flag. The offense was simplified with players largely staying at one position. A fly motion offense was featured. Running backs split outside and ran in motion before the snap. Off that, the Chargers could run a sweep, fake to a reverse or play action.

Games were played on Saturdays.

Eric Weddle (left) and Dan Cella coach the Chargers on the field during a youth flag-football league in the spring of 2015. — Dan Cella

Hours after, Cella and Weddle would watch the film — Weddle, by then, already had reviewed the tape once with Gaige. The two coaches decided how to structure the upcoming Tuesday practice. Weddle and Rivers would text back and forth during the sessions, Weddle sending Rivers video and photos of different plays.

They rode the emotions of fatherhood.

Rivers was extra giddy the time Gunner, at safety, had his first interception returned for a touchdown. When one game ended with a pick at quarterback, he consoled his son with a heavy heart. Same goes for Weddle on plays his son made or missed, part of the natural highs and lows of youth sports.

Their season ended with a high.

By now, half of the Poway Chargers were in tears.

It was the Super Bowl, and they trailed the North County Patriots by three scores in the second half. Weddle, Cella, Rivers and other family members encouraged the boys, telling them to hold their heads up, keep fighting. Some regained their composure. Not all did. The deficit was down to 12 points with less than two minutes left.

The Chargers had the ball.

Time for some fun.

The comeback began with a "why not?" gadget play, one that'd been practiced all year but not called in a game. Gunner handed the ball to Cella's son Brody, who was in motion. Brody threw it back to Gunner across the field. Rivers' son took off, sprinting to midfield, cutting back across the field and shaking past a defender for a 45-yard score.

A sizable Poway cheering section saw the long touchdown.

Linebacker Manti Te'o, defensive end Tenny Palepoi, safety Adrian Phillips and defensive end Kendall Reyes were present from the San Diego Chargers. McCoy also was nearby, as son Luke played an older level of flag football; Luke later caught the winning touchdown in his team's Super Bowl.

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"I told Philip, 'Gunner must have gotten that from his mom's side, the way he was juking,' " Te'o joked. "He outran almost everyone on that play."

The Chargers were down 5 points now.

The Patriots customarily began the series on their own 5-yard line. On first down, Poway recorded a tackle for a loss and called timeout. On second down, the Patriots muffed the snap and recovered. On third, an all-out blitz came for a third time, leading to a flag pull for a safety.

All tears were dry. Excitement took over. The Chargers sprinted back across the field.

They had 37 seconds to go 45 yards.

Super Bowl champs received rings befitting the occasion in an ages 5-to-6 youth flag football league Philip Rivers and Eric Weddle's sons participated in during the 2015 spring. — Dan Cella

Gunner completed a pass halfway down the field. The receiver's flag was pulled inbounds, so the clock ran. About seven seconds were left when Gunner took the final snap, heaving a deep pass Brody caught in the back corner of the end zone. And that's how the Chargers won the Super Bowl.

Rivers and Weddle hugged and high-fived. They lifted the players, praising them for facing adversity and not giving up.

Cella, a proud dad and coach that day, also was a proud fan.

Snack duty had rotated weekly all season. When it was Weddle's turn, along with snacks, he brought a Nike backpack and football for each of the eight boys. When it was Rivers' turn, each kid received a snack bag including a Rivers-signed football card. The men routinely signed autographs and posed for photos before and after games when approached. They were supportive of all the boys, not just their own.

"The way they are as dads, the way they are as husbands to both Tiffany (Rivers) and Chanel (Weddle)," Cella said, "gosh. For me as a Chargers fan, growing up a fan my whole life and seeing some of the leaders who've been in and out of the program, I just know how blessed we've been as a franchise to have these two guys as the face of our offense and the face of our defense.

"We're so lucky. These guys don't go out and drink. They don't go out and party. They spend their weekends watching game film of their 5- and 6-year-old, talking about dance recitals their girls have the next day. ... We've been so blessed to have these guys. You wish it could go on forever, but you know it can't."