Once again, yet another season did not end how the San Diego Chargers would have liked, however, there is no doubting the talent on this team. Winning eleven straight games at any point in the season is the mark of a dominant team and I would expect San Diego to be back competing for a championship once again in 2010. Ending the campaign at 13-3 (6-2 home, 7-1 away), the Chargers tied a franchise-record with 11 consecutive wins, won an NFL-record 18 consecutive games in December, and tied the 1970-74 Miami Dolphins for the most consecutive games won in a calendar month (18 in November) since 1970, while also having scored twenty or more points in an NFL-record 22 consecutive games! They just need to find a way to get over the hump and win the big playoff game.

Even with the departure of running back LaDainian Tomlinson, who rushed for 10+ touchdowns in his NFL-record ninth consecutive season, the Chargers’ offense should not see a huge effect as quarterback Philip Rivers has proven to be a top-notch passer in this league and running back Darren Sproles (93 rushes, 343 YDS, 3 TD – 45 REC, 497 YDS, 4 TD) appears very capable of handling an increased role in the offense. Rivers (317 completions, 4,254 YDS, 65.2% completion rate, 28 TD, 104.4 passer rating) became first Charger to record consecutive 100+ passer rating seasons, while his career-high passing yards ranks third in Bolts history. Helping Rivers attain those numbers are wide out Vincent Jackson (68 REC, 1,167 YDS, 9 TD) and tight end Antonio Gates (79 REC, 1,157 YDS, 8 TD) who each surpassed 1,150 receiving yards for only the second time in team history – the first being in 1980 by wide receiver John Jefferson (1,340 YDS) and tight end Kellen Winslow (1,290 YDS). This San Diego team can rack up yards and points, both on the ground and through the air!

This well-rounded Chargers team also has a pretty good defense, which is led by linebacker Stephen Cooper’s team-best 102 tackles, 71 solos, and 31 assists, in addition to posting 3 tackles for loss, 3 forced fumbles, and 8 passes broken up. Talk about being all over the field! Other defensive leaders obviously include linebacker Shawne Merriman with 4 sacks and fellow-LB Shaun Phillips who leads his team in sacks, tackles for loss, and forced fumbles, with 7 of each. In the middle of the secondary is second leading tackler, safety Eric Weddle (82 tackles, 68 solos, 14 assists, 1.5 sacks, 5 tackles for loss, and 2 interceptions), while patrolling the outside are matching bookend corners Quentin Jammer (58 tackles), who leads the team with 11 pass defenses and 3 interceptions, and Antonio Cromartie (10 pass defenses) who also has 3 interceptions.

This is a team which looks to Philip Rivers to take them deep into the NFL Playoffs, while always a good bet to make it all the way. Will this be the year they get that monkey off their back and make it to the big game? If you want to be there to see it then they do, order your 2010 San Diego Chargers tickets today and come witness the excitement each week at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California.