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San Diego Chargers,
professional football team and one of five teams in the Western Division
of the American Football Conference (AFC) of the National Football
League (NFL). The Chargers play at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego,
California, and wear uniforms of navy blue, gold, and white.
From 1960 to 1965 the Chargers won five division championships and one
league crown in the now-defunct American Football League (AFL). Wide
receiver Lance Alworth set a professional football record by catching at
least one pass in 96 consecutive games from 1962 to 1970. During the
late 1970s and early 1980s head coach Don Coryell oversaw one of the
most explosive offensive units in NFL history. The team was led by
quarterback Dan Fouts and wide receiver Charlie Joiner, who both set
career team records—Fouts with 43,040 passing yards and 254 passing
touchdowns and Joiner with 586 receptions.
Founded by hotel magnate Barron Hilton, the Los Angeles Chargers were
one of six charter members of the AFL in 1960. Although the Chargers won
the AFL’s Western Division championship that year under head coach Sid
Gillman, the franchise posted heavy financial losses and moved to San
Diego the following year. A future Hall of Fame member, Gillman steered
the club to four more Western Division crowns during the next five
years. San Diego lost four of five AFL Championship Games, however,
recording its only victory in 1963 over the Boston Patriots. Gillman had
three outstanding quarterbacks in his charge: John Hadl, Jack Kemp, and
Tobin Rote. He also coached one of the era’s finest wide receivers,
Lance Alworth, who became the first AFL player to be enshrined in the
Pro Football Hall of Fame. Alworth posted six 1000-yard seasons in seven
years, leading the league in yardage three times. Linebacker Emil Karas
and end Earl Faison anchored the league’s top-rated defense in 1961 and
1963.
San Diego finished in third place in the Western Division each year from
1966 to 1969. The team joined the NFL in 1970 when the NFL and AFL
completed their merger. As an NFL team, the Chargers continued to
struggle, placing third or fourth in the AFC’s Western Division each
year from 1970 to 1978.
In 1978 Don Coryell was named head coach and Dan Fouts took over as
starting quarterback. A year later Fouts captured the first of three
consecutive passing titles to lead the Chargers to the first of three
straight division crowns. Fouts strung together four consecutive
300-yard games in 1979, establishing a record en route to the first
4000-yard season in NFL history. The records were two of many new NFL
standards he set during his 15-year career. Fouts’s favorite targets
were wide receiver Charlie Joiner and tight end Kellen Winslow. All
three were eventually elected to the Hall of Fame.
Although he was better known for his offensive strategy, Coryell
assembled the league’s toughest defense in 1979, as the Chargers held 8
of 16 opponents to ten or fewer points. Linemen Fred Dean and Gary
Johnson led the unit. Coryell and the Chargers failed to advance in the
playoffs, however, losing in the first round in 1979 and in the second
round the following three seasons.
In 1987 Fouts retired, ranking behind only Fran Tarkenton in career
yards (43,040), completions (3297), and attempts (5604). (Dan Marino
currently leads all three categories). A nine-season playoff drought
followed, during which the club finished as high as third only once.
Replacing Fouts became a struggle in itself, as San Diego cycled through
four starting quarterbacks from 1988 to 1991. Stan Humphries settled
into the job in 1992, leading the Chargers to three playoff appearances
in four years under head coach Bobby Ross. Following the 1994 season,
San Diego made its first Super Bowl appearance, losing to the San
Francisco 49ers, 49-26.
1995 Super Bowl XXIX Lost to San Francisco 49ers, 49-26
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