San Diego Chargers Top 10 Players of All-Time

9).TE Kellen Winslow Sr. (1979-1987) HOF ’95

While modern-day TE Antonio Gates sits comfortably atop the Chargers all-time list in most major receiving categories, Kellen Winslow Sr. was the ultimate Antonio Gates of his day. During his nine-year career riddled by injuries, Winslow was able to catch 541 passes for 6,741 yards and 45 touchdowns. Not to mention, Winslow also caught 28 passes for 380 yards and four touchdowns in his six playoff games played.

Now, some may read the stats of Winslow and think, “wow, what was so special about this guy? Gary Garrison had more receiving yards, dude.” I believe that stats should matter, but not as much as legacy. Winslow was consistently hurt throughout his career, something he could not control. In his nine years with San Diego, Winslow only had five completely healthy seasons. In his four other seasons, he was either sitting on the beach or playing through injuries.

His most dominating years came from 1980-1983 when Winslow caught for an average of 1,064.5 yards, 79.5 receptions and 8.25 touchdowns per season. As well, the Chargers were able to make it to the playoffs three straight times from 1980-1982. If you look at his yards per game totals, the Hall-of-Famer averaged 74.7 receiving yards per game which is pretty dynamite if you ask me.

Winslow was never flashy, he was never loud and he was never ungrateful for his opportunity. He was tough and resilient and one of the best Chargers of all-time.

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