NFL Team History: The San Diego Chargers

The Chargers franchise was founded in 1959 and they were originally owned by Barron Hilton, the son of Hilton Hotels founder Conrad Hilton. Initially, the team resided in Los Angeles, California and was referred to as the Los Angeles Chargers.

In 1960, they began competing in the American Football League with Sid Gillman as head coach.

The Chargers faced the Dallas Texans in ther inaugural AFL game and celebrated a 21-20 victory. Moreover, the Chargers became the AFL Western Division champions. In the first ever AFL Championship Game, the Chargers would face the Houston Oilers. However, the game resulted in an unfavorable 24-16 loss for the Chargers.

San Diego, California became the new home for the Chargers franchise after spending their inaugural season in Los Angeles. They were now the lone professional football franchise in their home city. While in Los Angeles, they shared the L.A. spotlight with the Los Angeles Rams of the NFL.

Just like the year before, the Chargers would appear in the AFL Championship match-up against the Houston Oilers. The results were similar to the season before as the Oilers earned the AFL trophy with a 10-3 victory.

The 1963 season was highlighted by a 51-10 trouncing over the Boston Patriots for the AFL Championship. Finally, in their third attempt, the Chargers could now call themselves AFL Champions.

In 1966, a group of investors purchased the San Diego Chargers from majority owner Barron Hilton.

The Chargers played their first game in their new stadium, San Diego Stadium, on August 20, 1967. The game featured a match-up with the NFL's Detroit Lions, one in which they suffered a 38-17 defeat.

As a note, San Diego Stadium was renamed Jack Murphy Stadium in 1981 and maintained that name until 1997 when it became Qualcomm Stadium.

In 1970, the AFL was absorbed by the NFL and the Chargers were assigned to the AFC Western Division along with the Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, and Oakland Raiders.

In 1973, the Chargers acquired former Baltimore Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas. Still, they were unable to muster up any success.

In fact, it was not until the 1979 season when the Chargers clinched their first post-season berth since 1966 as they were led by quarterback Dan Fouts. Furthermore, they were crowned AFC West Division champions. Unfortunately, the Chargers would not take advantage of their playoff berth as they were defeated by the Houston Oilers 17-14.

The following season, the Chargers duplicated their AFC West Division title and clinched another playoff berth. After defeating the Buffalo Bills 20-14, the Chargers would host their AFC West division foes, the Oakland Raiders, in the AFC Championship event. However, their Super Bowl aspirations were derailed with a 34-27 loss to the Raiders.

The Chargers continued their stranglehold on the AFC West Division as they captured their third straight division crown. They would appear in the AFC Championship Game for a second straight season, but this time it was the Cincinnati Bengals that denied the Chargers of a Super Bowl appearance. In what was has been referenced as the 'Freezer Bowl', the Chargers were crushed 27-7 by the Bengals at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati. The wind chill factor for that game was reported as negative 37 degrees.

The Chargers qualified for the playoffs again in 1982; however they were ousted by the Miami Dolphins. The Chargers would spend the next nine seasons watching the playoffs from home.

In 1992, following an 0-4 start, the Chargers racked up 11 wins in the final 12 games of the season, resulting in their first AFC West Division title since 1981. They would defeat the Kansas City Chiefs in the Wild Card match-up, but would be eliminated from playoff contention a week later by the Miami Dolphins. On a finer note, the Chargers' head coach Bobby Ross was named as the NFL Coach of the Year.

In 1994, the Chargers cruised to their second AFC West Division title in three years. In the post-season, the Chargers would upstage the favored Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Championship Game and earn their first Super Bowl trip. The NFL powerhouse San Francisco 49ers whitewashed the Chargers by a humiliating score of 49-26.

The Chargers clinched a playoff spot in 1995, but they were eliminated in the first round by the Indianapolis Colts.

The Chargers selected running back LaDanian Tomlinson and quarterback Drew Brees in the 2001 NFL Draft. Brees and Tomlinson would lead the Chargers back into the post-season in 2004.

In 2004, the Chargers posted a remarkable 12-4 regular season record. This was especially noteworthy considering that they were only 4-12 in 2003.

They would capture the AFC Western Division title for the first time since their Super Bowl season of 1994 and their first post-season berth since 1995. Additionally, head coach Marty Schottenheimer was awarded as the NFL Coach of the Year.

Despite the accolades, the Chargers were defeated by the perceived inferior New York Jets 20-17 in overtime.

The San Diego Chargers missed the cut for the post-season in 2005; however, they posted their best regular season record to date in 2006 with 14 wins and 2 losses. Prior to the 2006 NFL season, Philip Rivers, who was drafted in 2004, was named as the starting quarterback after Drew Brees signed with the New Orleans Saints.

LaDanian Tomlinson set an NFL record with 28 rushing touchdowns, and scored 31 total touchdowns. He was also awarded the 2006 NFL Most Valuable Player.

In the divisional round of the playoffs, the Chargers were defeated by the New England Patriots 24-21, ending all hopes of another Super Bowl appearance.

Prior to the 2007 season, Norv Turner replaced Marty Schottenheimer as the head coach.