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2008 San Diego Chargers NFL Football Predictions
Overview: The San Diego Chargers have absolutely dominated the AFC West over the last two seasons, winning the division by five games in 2006 and four games last year.  They’ve gone 10-2 against their divisional rivals (both losses coming against the Chiefs) during that span.  With 20 of last years 22 starters returning, and both new projected starters being promoted from within, there’s little reason to think that the Chargers won’t roll to their third straight AFC West title in 2007. 
 
This team has great depth and continuity at every position as well as on Norv Turner’s coaching staff.  On paper, the Chargers are as good or better than any team in the NFL, even with a dozen players coming off surgery in the offseason.  One area of concern, however, lies in the stats.  The Chargers led the league with a whopping +24 turnover margin last year, and those types of numbers don’t tend to repeat themselves two years in a row.
 
Offense: Quarterback Philip Rivers is a leader and a winner, dating back to his collegiate days at NC State.  Rivers struggled at times over the first half of last season adapting to Norv Turner’s offense, throwing ten interceptions and only ten touchdown passes in his first nine games.   But he closed out the season with a nice flourish: 11 TD’s with only five picks over the Chargers final seven games.  Rivers is coming off ACL surgery, but he’s shown no lingering effects thusfar in preseason.  Clipboard holding Billy Volek is an above average backup.
 
Running back LaDainian Tomlinson has led the NFL in rushing for each of the last two years, the premier player in the NFL at his position.  This unit did suffer the free agency loss of quality backup Michael Turner and they cut aging blocking fullback extraordinaire Lorenzo Neal.  Yet the Chargers appear set, depth wise with Andrew Pinnock as the new starting fullback, Darren Sproles as a change of pace tailback, and rookies Jacob Hester (LSU, third round) and Marcus Thomas (UTEP, fifth round).
 
Tight end Antonio Gates is an elite level pass catcher; one of the best in the league at his position.  Chris Chambers made an enormous impact on the passing game after arriving midseason from the Dolphins last year, deserving at least some of the credit for Rivers second half turnaround.  Including three playoff games, Chambers had 51 catches, averaging just shy of 16 yards per reception.  Vincent Jackson emerged during the postseason, with 300 receiving yards in the playoffs.  Buster Davis was a first rounder last year, but had a limited impact in his rookie season.
 
All five starters are back on the offensive line, including pro bowlers left guard Kris Dielman and left tackle Marcus McNeill.  You could make an argument that center Nick Hardwick deserved a trip to Honolulu as well.  LJ Shelton, who started all 16 games with the Dolphins last year, was brought in during free agency to compete with second year pro Jeromey Clary at right tackle, giving San Diego a solid backup at tackle regardless of who wins the starting job.
 
Defense: San Diego defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell continues to find employment at this level despite the enormous amount of criticism that he has taken over the years.  In my opinion, Cottrell was far too conservative last year, sitting back in coverage instead of attacking the line of scrimmage on every down.  That being said, you won’t find many defenses in the NFL with as much talent as this one – even Ted Cottrell can’t turn this defense into anything but an elite level stop unit.
 
Defensive tackle Jamal Williams is one of the dozen Chargers that had surgery in the offseason, and he’s 32 years old, an eleven year veteran.  That being said, Williams remains the premier run stuffer at his position in the AFC; a one man wrecking crew who requires constant double teams.  Defensive ends Igor Olshansky and Luis Castillo are both strong pass rushers, and the depth behind them is excellent.
 
The Chargers rank first in the NFL with 149 sacks over the past three seasons.  Much of the credit must go to their linebacking corps. Outside linebacker Shawne Merriman leads the NFL with 39.5 sacks over the last three years.  On the other side, Shawn Phillips has 27 sacks during that three year span, giving the Chargers a pair of absolute monsters at LB.  12 year veteran Derek Smith started 14 games for San Francisco last year, landing here in free agency.  He’ll immediately improve their depth in the middle.
 
As a team, the Chargers led the NFL with 30 interceptions last year.  Cornerback Antonio Cromartie led the NFL with ten interceptions last year, and had three return touchdowns, including a never-to-be-beaten 109 yard missed field goal return touchdown.  On the other side, Quentin Jammer doesn’t have Cromartie’s great hands to pick passes off, but he’s a top notch cover corner.  Safety Clinton Hart is coming off a career year, while Eric Weddle enjoyed a tremendous rookie season.
 
Even the Chargers kicking game is top notch, not always the case on teams with numerous salary cap challenging star players.  Punter Mike Scifres has a 38.6 net punting average over the past four seasons, best in the league during that span.  Scifres also leads the league with 125 punts downed inside the 20 yard line during that span.  Kicker Nate Kaeding is the most accurate kicker in the NFL over the past three seasons, and his 4-4 field goal performance at New England in the playoffs last January squelched any doubts about his ability to kick under pressure.
 
Schedule: The Chargers are being treated like a bonafide Super Bowl contender by the networks this fall, with five nighttime national TV games.  They only face two East Coast trips with 1 PM start time games.  And, one of their ‘road’ games is actually a neutral site affair in London against New Orleans.  And, to top it all off, the Chargers face one of the easiest schedules in the NFL on paper, with both the Colts and Patriots visiting San Diego and only one road game against a team with a winning record from last year (Pittsburgh).