Los Angeles Chargers

Chargers LB Butler: 'I just played bad' in 2014

Published Jun. 7, 2015 2:39 a.m. ET

foxsports

The Chargers invested a second-round pick in Denzel Perryman. They've still got big plans for Manti Te'o, too.

Another season of mediocre play simply won't cut it for Donald Butler. Those two youngsters could force him out of a starting inside linebacker spot.

“I just played bad (last season),” Butler told reporters. “It happens. Like I said, I’m just ready for this year though, and I’m ready to get after it.”

To regain his old form, he'll have to change John Pagano's opinion first. The Chargers' defensive coordinator stripped Butler of more and more responsibilities as his inconsistent 2014 wore on. And Butler, who became a running-downs reserve, missed the season's final two games with a dislocated elbow.

So, after San Diego missed the playoffs, Butler returned home to Sacramento, Calif. to rehab and train. He thinks he'll be able to justify the his seven-year, $51.8 million deal his team gave him just last year.

Moreover, Butler is playing for pride now -- and perhaps a job.

“More than anything, it’s about going out there and representing the name on the back of your jersey,” Butler said. “And I felt like I didn’t do that well enough. I’m my own worst critic.”

(h/t ESPN)