The End of the Road

Who knew it would come so soon. After riding an 11 game streak and being the hottest team in the NFL, my San Diego Chargers couldn't pull through in the end against the Jets. I was one of the 69,000 in Qualcomm stadium in disbelief. It was a horrible way to end the season, especially with so many question marks on free agents, the future of LT, and the future of this team actually staying in San Diego. Let's face it, if the Chargers did win the Super Bowl this year, they would have gotten a new stadium. Done deal. Not too sure anymore.

Now, I was definitely surprised when Kaeding missed the first field goal, and I had that same feeling for three different times. But he is not the only one to blame. Sure, maybe he is the part to blame, but it is a team sport. So if the team loss was worth 100 percent, I'd say 50 percent of it is actually Kaeding. You get paid millions to make kicks, it's like your 9-5 job. I can understand missing the 57 yarder, but the other two were chip shots for a player of that caliber. I don't care if you're the most accurate kicker in the regular season, cause I wouldn't mind missing a couple of those kicks in the regular season for some ones that are made in the playoffs. You aren't remembered for what you do in the regular season, it's what you do in the playoffs. That Bengals kick a couple weeks ago, believe me, everyone has already forgotten.

Now for the other 50 percent. Shaun Phillips headbutt. Stupid. V. Jack's kicking of the flag. Stupid. Numerous false start penalties. Stupid. Weddle's missed tackle that let Shonn Greene go for a TD. Stupid. Cromartie's numerous missed tackles and fumbles on returns. Stupid. Gates dropping a couple of passes. Stupid. There were a lot of stupid things going on, I can't even remember them all.

Revis' pick on Rivers was almost entirely luck, so I can't blame Rivers on that one. But, he did throw one pick that really messed us up. The playcalling was definitely questionable. Run inside on 1st down for 1-2 yards. That's what it felt like the whole game. I know we're trying to get the defense to respect the run game, but it defintely wasn't respectable. We are now a pass first team, so why not do what got us here? If anything, the pass can open the run game up more.

The one person I truly feel sorry for is LT. He changed this franchise around all by himself, and his only remaining task ahead of him is to hold the Lombardi trophy. Sure, he barely did anything, but his heart for the team is so big, and it pains me and many other people to see him struggle like this. Here's to hoping he will be here next year for another stab at it.

Someone else I hope to see again next year is the motivated leader of Loge Level, Section 22, Jake Jr. He always fires everyone up, through all the ups and downs. A true Charger fan, representing at every Charger game. He sure had some bad things to say about Cromartie, you should of heard him.
Now there are a lot of question marks on free agents and what not. We honestly are just going to have to wait and see what happens, especially with the decision of a capped or uncapped season still in the air. That is basically all we can do now, wait and see.




Amid all the disappointment and heartache, I still have love for the Chargers. I'll still be here following every single news report, following the draft, going to those public practices and what not. Shoot, I'll probably even be able to find a good priced jersey now since they'll be on sale. All the bandwagon fans are back onto the road, and will be back on next year once they find out we're in the playoffs. It's always going to happen, there's no way to ever stop that. It's always hard to say there's always next year, but it truly is the only thing we can say. So for all the bandwagon fans, see you later. For all the true Charger fans, see you at training camp. Keep the faith.