The StubHub Center may seat only 30,000 people, but fans in Los Angeles are in for a treat this season.
The Chargers are my pick to win the AFC West in 2017.
I know. Crazy, right?
This is a team that has gone 9-23 over the past two years and hasn't won the West since a string of four consecutive titles spanning from 2006-09.
Horrific injury luck is the predominant excuse for the Chargers' recent struggles, and the work of Scott Kacsmar confirms it as a legitimate. As Kacsmar points out, the Chargers lost the second-most games to injury last season and ranked fifth, second and seventh in the category the previous three years.
Keenan Allen, Brandon Mebane, Jason Verrett, Jahleel Addae, Brandon Flowers, Danny Woodhead, Stevie Johnson, Manti Te'o and Jerry Attaochu missed significant time in 2016. Melvin Gordon also missed nearly four full games. First-round pick Joey Bosa, who missed training camp during a holdout, didn't play until Week 5 because of a hamstring injury.
It may be hard to believe after four consecutive seasons of bad luck, but regression to the mean in the injury department is inevitable and has to be baked into any prognostications for the 2017 season.
With that in mind, all that matters today is the team's 2017 projected 53-man roster and its competition. And the Chargers' roster not only stacks up with the top teams in the league, but is arguably better than those in Kansas City, Oakland and Denver. Here's why:
They have the division's easiest schedule, and their rivals have flaws
The AFC West is sure to be a challenge and is arguably the league's toughest division. The Raiders, whom I loved last year, are pretty stacked offensively, but failed to fill defensive voids (specifically up the middle) that cost them last year. The Chiefs' defense has transitioned from "dominant" to "good" and the Broncos' outstanding defense is unlikely to overcome a below-average offense with quarterback question marks.
Granted, all four teams have a shot, but helping push the Chargers over the top is the division's easiest schedule, which includes unique matchups with Cleveland and Jacksonville. Anthony Lynn was a hot commodity during the coaching carousel and is in place as the team's new head coach. Gus Bradley (defense) and Ken Whisenhunt (offense) form a strong one-two coordinator punch.
They have one of the league's top cornerback duos
In analyzing the Chargers' personnel, it's best to start with the defense, which is one of the most intriguing units in the NFL.
Verrett is back from last year's knee injury, and the 26-year-old lockdown corner joins Casey Hayward to form one of the league's top duos at the position. Hayward dominated while shadowing a ridiculously tough slate of wide receivers down the stretch last season. From Week 6 on, he limited the opposition to 41 receptions, 564 yards and one touchdown on 71 targets. That came despite having to shadow Demaryius Thomas (twice), Julio Jones, DeAndre Hopkins, Mike Evans, Kelvin Benjamin, Amari Cooper, Terrelle Pryor and Jeremy Maclin during that span.
Depth is an issue at corner, but the Chargers are sitting pretty at the top with Verrett and Hayward.
They have one of the league's best pass-rushing duos
Bosa didn't play until Week 5 last year, but it didn't take long for the 2016 first-rounder to show his dominance. He racked up 10.5 sacks and 18 tackles for loss on 538 snaps. Bosa will be bookended by 2012 first-round pick Melvin Ingram, who just re-upped for four years and $66 million.
The rest of the defense is solid
Bradley is the team's new defensive coordinator following a disappointing stint as head coach in Jacksonville. This is notable because the Chargers are switching to a 4-3 scheme that allowed both Telvin Smith and Paul Posluszny to eclipse 1,000 snaps last year for the Jaguars. In L.A., Jatavis Brown and Denzel Perryman are likely to fill those shoes in Bradley's defense. Brown was a fifth-round steal in last year's draft and Perryman has been solid since being scooped up in the 2015 second round. Both linebackers are entering their prime.
Addae signed a four-year, $22 million extension during the offseason and leads a safety unit that also includes veteran Dwight Lowery, Adrian Phillips, Tre Boston and 2017 midround picks Rayshawn Jenkins and Desmond King. Mebane is now 32 years old, but is one of the game's top run-stuffers at nose tackle.
The Chargers' defense lacks depth and could use a bit more punch in the interior and at safety, but it is dominant on the edge and at cornerback and sports a solid pair of every-down linebackers. This is a unit that should be even better after leading the league in interceptions (18) and finishing second in tackles for loss (108) last season. At the very least, it's an above-average defense with the upside for a full-on breakout campaign.
If healthy, their offensive weapons should be much improved
On offense, the story is more about an impressive amount of talented depth in the passing game.
Allen is back, though his durability is an obvious concern considering he has failed to appear in 16 games in a season and has missed 23 games over the past two years. Still, he's only 25 years old, has a pair of 70-plus reception campaigns and is reportedly back to full speed.
Behind Allen, there's Tyrell Williams, who busted out to the tune of 69 receptions, 1,059 yards and seven touchdowns last year. Speedster Travis Benjamin will be back at full health after a knee injury limited him during his first season with the Chargers. And, of course, there is 2017 seventh overall pick Mike Williams. The former Clemson star is off to a slow start as he recovers from a back injury, but wideouts selected in the top 10 over the past decade have been significantly involved and productive as rookies. At the very least, he adds depth to a talented until that also includes slot man Dontrelle Inman.
Future Hall of Famer Antonio Gates will return after tying Tony Gonzalez's record for most touchdowns by a tight end (111). Gates is now 37, but will remain a significant component of the Chargers' passing game. His counterpart Hunter Henry, a second-round pick last year, was terrific as a rookie and is in line for an expanded role. It's easy to make a case that the Chargers have the league's best one-two punch at tight end.
As if that isn't enough, the Chargers also will be able to lean on Gordon, a third-year workhorse. The 2015 first-round pick is only 24, and although he has missed five games during his first two seasons, he was productive while racking up 292 touches in 12 full games last season. Gordon scored 12 touchdowns and averaged 2.0 yards after contact per attempt, which ranked 16th among 69 backs with 50-plus carries.
Philip Rivers is one of the best in the business
Leading the passing game will, of course, be Rivers, who remains one of the game's best quarterbacks and most underrated players.
Despite the team's injury woes and recent struggles, he still managed to perform relatively well. Rivers, 35, has eclipsed 4,200 passing yards seven of the past eight seasons and has completed 65.1 percent of his attempts over the span (ranking seventh among 61 quarterbacks with 600-plus attempts). If we adjust for the depth of each throw, Rivers' accuracy rate comes in 4.1 percentage points above expected, which ranks fifth behind only Russell Wilson, Drew Brees, Kirk Cousins and Aaron Rodgers in the past decade.
The lingering concern
The big question for this Chargers team is the offensive line, but the good news is that it should be better than last year's underwhelming unit. Los Angeles signed Russell Okung away from Denver to play left tackle. Meanwhile, the team selected two of this year's top rookie interior linemen, Forrest Lamp (second round) and Dan Feeney (third). Both are expected to play a significant role -- likely as the starting guards -- on a line that also includes right tackle Joe Barksdale and center Matt Slauson.
Rivers is armed with more weapons than he has had in years and shouldn't have as much on his shoulders, thanks to the team's improved and emerging defense. As long as the line isn't a complete disaster, the offense should be able to match or improve on the 2.7 touchdowns per game it scored last year (12th in the league).
When analyzing a team's prospects, we tend to contradict ourselves. The Redskins are often criticized for overspending in free agency. The Eagles are still mocked for their attempt at the "Dream Team." Build through the draft -- not free agency, we tweet with hashtags galore. The Chargers have done exactly that, but get snubbed as a potential breakout in lieu of a team like Tampa Bay, which added a rookie tight end and an injury-plagued, 30-year-old deep threat (I'm being slightly flippant) to an otherwise pedestrian roster.
The Chargers have drafted and developed a strong core with talented veterans and/or emerging stars at nearly every position. They have the best team on paper in the AFC West and are primed for a return to the playoffs in 2017.