1970 San Diego Chargers season

Last updated

1970 San Diego Chargers season
Owner Eugene V. Klein
General manager Sid Gillman
Head coach Charlie Waller
Home stadium San Diego Stadium
Results
Record5–6–3
Division place3rd AFC West
PlayoffsDid not qualify
Pro Bowlers
All-Pros None [2]

The 1970 San Diego Chargers season was the franchise's eleventh overall season and first season in the National Football League (NFL). As a result of the NFL-AFL Merger, where the league was broken into two conferences, each member of the American Football League was moved into the American Football Conference.

Contents

San Diego's 5–6–3 record was the first of seven consecutive losing seasons for the franchise. The 1970 Chargers are the last NFL team to record three ties in a single season, a record which will likely stand, as since the NFL adopted overtime for regular season games in 1974 no team has recorded more than one tie in a season.

Offseason

NFL draft

1970 San Diego Chargers draft
RoundPickPlayerPositionCollegeNotes
1 15 Walker Gillette   Wide receiver Richmond
242 Tom Williams   Defensive end UC Davis
494Bill Maddox  Tight end Syracuse
5119Pettus Farrar  Running back Norfolk State
6146 Billy Parks  Wide receiver Long Beach State 49ers
7171Jim Fabish  Running back Texas-El Paso
8198 Wayne Clark   Quarterback U. S. International
9223 Chris Fletcher   Cornerback Temple
10250 Mac Steen   Guard Florida
11275 Jack Protz   Linebacker Syracuse
12302Howard Gravelle Tight endUC Davis
13327Bernard Bradley  Defensive back Utah State
14354 Tyrone Caldwell  Defensive tackle South Carolina State
15379Eugene Childs Running backTexas-El Paso
16406Mike Green Running back Nebraska
17431Dave Sanks Guard Louisville
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Undrafted free agents

1970 Undrafted Free Agents of note
PlayerPositionCollege
Ed RoseboroughQuarterback Arizona State
Reg SharleyLinebacker Memphis State
Karl SneiderWide receiver Augsburg
James SnowLinebacker USC
LeeVone SpencerLinebacker Prairie View A&M
Bill StansfieldDefensive tackle Penn State
Ben StephensDefensive back Grambling
Dan ThatcherKicker Occidental
Lee ThomasDefensive end Jackson State
Paul TollefsonTackle UC Santa Barbara

Roster

1970 San Diego Chargers roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams (ST)

Reserve {{{Reserve Lists}}}

Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

WeekDateOpponentResultRecordVenueAttendanceRecap
1September 20 Baltimore Colts L 14–160–1 San Diego Stadium 47,782 Recap
2September 27 Oakland Raiders T 27–270–1–1San Diego Stadium42,109 Recap
3October 4at Los Angeles Rams L 10–370–2–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 69,564 Recap
4October 12 Green Bay Packers L 20–220–3–1San Diego Stadium53,064 Recap
5October 18at Chicago Bears W 20–71–3–1 Wrigley Field 45,278 Recap
6October 25 Houston Oilers T 31–311–3–2San Diego Stadium41,427 Recap
7November 1at Cleveland Browns W 27–102–3–2 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 80,047 Recap
8November 8 Denver Broncos W 24–213–3–2San Diego Stadium48,327 Recap
9November 15at Boston Patriots W 16–144–3–2 Harvard Stadium 30,597 Recap
10November 22at Oakland Raiders L 17–204–4–2 Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum 54,594 Recap
11November 29at Kansas City Chiefs L 14–264–5–2 Municipal Stadium 50,315 Recap
12December 6 Cincinnati Bengals L 14–174–6–2San Diego Stadium41,461 Recap
13December 13at Denver Broncos T 17–174–6–3 Mile High Stadium 50,959 Recap
14December 20 Kansas City Chiefs W 31–135–6–3San Diego Stadium41,379 Recap

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1: vs. Baltimore Colts

Week One: Baltimore Colts at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Colts037616
Chargers007714

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: September 20
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: 66 °F (18.9 °C), relative humidity 70%, wind 8 mph
  • Game attendance: 47,782
  • Box score
Game information

Week 2: vs. Oakland Raiders

Week Two: Oakland Raiders at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Raiders3170727
Chargers3731427

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: September 27
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: 81 °F (27.2 °C), relative humidity 17%, wind 9 mph
  • Game attendance: 42,109
  • Referee: Ben Dreith
  • Box score
Game information

Week 3: at Los Angeles Rams

Week Three: San Diego Chargers at Los Angeles Rams – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Chargers037010
Rams10200737

at Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California

  • Date: October 4
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: 68 °F (20.0 °C), relative humidity 79%, wind 11 mph
  • Game attendance: 69,564
  • Box score
Game information

Week 4: vs. Green Bay Packers

Week Four: Green Bay Packers at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Packers3313322
Chargers0601420

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: October 12
  • Game time: 6:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: 68 °F (20.0 °C), relative humidity 72%, wind 8 mph
  • Game attendance: 53,064
  • Box score
Game information

Week 5: at Chicago Bears

Week Five: San Diego Chargers at Chicago Bears – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Chargers0713020
Bears07007

at Wrigley Field, Chicago, Illinois

  • Date: October 18
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: 50 °F (10.0 °C), relative humidity 55%, wind 10 mph
  • Game attendance: 45,278
  • Box score
Game information

Week 6: vs. Houston Oilers

Week Six: Houston Oilers at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Oilers01714031
Chargers01471031

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: October 25
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 63 °F (17.2 °C), relative humidity 67%, wind 10 mph
  • Game attendance: 41,427
  • Box score
Game information

Week 7: at Cleveland Browns

Week Seven: San Diego Chargers at Cleveland Browns – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Chargers0147627
Broncos370010

at Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

  • Date: November 1
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: 48 °F (8.9 °C), relative humidity 83%, wind 6 mph
  • Game attendance: 80,047
  • Referee: Walt Fitzgerald
  • Box score
Game information

Week 8: vs. Denver Broncos

Week Eight: Denver Broncos at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Broncos077721
Chargers3140724

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: November 8
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 61 °F (16.1 °C), relative humidity 69%, wind 9 mph
  • Game attendance: 48,327
  • Referee: Fred Silva
  • Box score
Game information

Week 9: at Boston Patriots

Week Nine: San Diego Chargers at Boston Patriots – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Chargers007916
Patriots700714

at Harvard Stadium, Boston, Massachusetts

  • Date: November 15
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: 44 °F (6.7 °C), relative humidity 97%, wind 17 mph
  • Game attendance: 30,597
  • Referee: Ben Dreith
  • Box score
Game information

Week 10: at Oakland Raiders

Week Ten: San Diego Chargers at Oakland Raiders – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Chargers007916
Raiders700714

at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California

  • Date: November 22
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 56 °F (13.3 °C), relative humidity 75%, wind 8 mph
  • Game attendance: 54,594
  • Referee: Pat Haggerty
  • Box score
Game information

Week 11: at Kansas City Chiefs

Week Eleven: San Diego Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Chargers700714
Chiefs1037626

at Municipal Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

  • Date: November 29
  • Game time: 3:00 p.m. CST
  • Game weather: 48 °F (8.9 °C), relative humidity 89%, wind 7 mph
  • Game attendance: 50,315
  • Referee: Jim Tunney
  • Box score
Game information

Week 12: vs. Cincinnati Bengals

Week Twelve: Cincinnati Bengals at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Bengals0107017
Chargers070714

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: December 6
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 61 °F (16.1 °C), relative humidity 54%, wind 6 mph
  • Game attendance: 41,461
  • Box score
Game information

Week 13: at Denver Broncos

Week Thirteen: San Diego Chargers at Denver Broncos – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Chargers7100017
Broncos0031417

at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado

  • Date: December 13
  • Game time: 2:00 p.m. MST
  • Game weather: 23 °F (−5.0 °C), relative humidity 71%, wind 6 mph, wind chill 16
  • Game attendance: 50,959
  • Referee: John McDonough
  • Box score
Game information

Week 14: vs. Kansas City Chiefs

Week Fourteen: Kansas City Chiefs at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Chiefs0103013
Chargers3147731

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: December 20
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 54 °F (12.2 °C), relative humidity 69%, wind 10 mph
  • Game attendance: 41,379
  • Referee: Norm Schachter
  • Box score
Game information

Standings

AFC West
WLTPCTDIVCONFPFPASTK
Oakland Raiders 842.6674–0–27–2–2300293L1
Kansas City Chiefs 752.5832–3–17–3–1272244L2
San Diego Chargers 563.4552–2–24–4–3282278W1
Denver Broncos 581.3851–4–13–6–1253264L1
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

Awards and honors

References

  1. "1970 NFL Pro Bowlers". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  2. "1970 NFL All-Pros". Pro-Football-Reference.com.