San Diego Chargers Top 10 Players of All-Time

Dec 7, 2014; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (17) throws a pass during the second quarter against the New England Patriots at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports

In 1960, the Chargers were officially founded by Hilton Hotel heir Barron Hilton and were first from Los Angeles before moving to San Diego in 1961. Since that time of their founding, the Chargers have seen success and failure alike. Since the Chargers franchise started back in the mid-20th century, great players have come and gone, but only a select few will be remembered forever as the greatest players in San Diego Chargers history.

From Lance Alworth to Philip Rivers, this list includes everybody and anybody the Chargers have seen grace the football field in a Charger uniform in descending order (from 10th-best to best). This list is a ranked list determined by three main, but varying factors: 1). career statistics, 2). legacy and 3). importance to franchise.

10). QB Philip Rivers (2004-Present) 

In choosing who was going to be on this list, I knew I had to combine the old with the new. Since the Chargers acquired Rivers in 2004, he has slowly become the face of the franchise. As it stands today, his 36,655 passing yards and 252 passing touchdowns stand only second place behind legendary QB Dan Fouts. Since ’04, Rivers has thrown for over 4,000 yards six times and in his past nine seasons, Rivers has averaged about 28 touchdowns thrown per season.

Reason why Rivers deserves this spot on the countdown is because of his winning record as a QB. Of course the pieces around him have been phenomenal, but he still has been able to lead the Chargers to the playoffs five times in nine seasons. Exceptional Charger QBs such as Fouts and John Hadl have only lead the Chargers to the playoffs four times and three times, respectively. In his career as a QB for the Bolts, Rivers has averaged 9.77 wins per season (an amazing mark for a QB).

With that considered, Rivers is one of the top players in Chargers history. His regular season passing success coupled with his ability to lead the Chargers to the playoffs are reasons why he is one of the best. And the greatest thing of all? He’s still not done.

Next: Greatest Chargers Ever: Number 9