Los Angeles Chargers: The offensive and defensive MVPs

The Los Angeles Chargers narrowly missed the postseason on a tiebreaker with a 9-7 final record. Although they missed the playoffs, LA had a great season.

The Los Angeles Chargers seemed like a giant experiment in 2017. After calling San Diego home for over 50 years, the organization packed their bags for Los Angeles. In three years the Chargers would play in a brand new, state of the art stadium in Inglewood alongside the Los Angeles Rams.

In 2017 however, the Chargers went to perhaps the only stadium that could be a downgrade from Qualcomm Stadium; The StubHub Center — a soccer stadium in Carson that holds just 27,000 people. While the stadium itself was newer and in better shape than Qualcomm, the Chargers would be playing in front of what seemed like a high school football crowd.

Even then, the Chargers struggled to fill their stadium with their own fans. It started with the Philadelphia Eagles. A massive fan base that swarmed the 27,000 seater. Every team aside from maybe the Browns had more fans in LA than Charger fans. The last game of the season, against the Oakland Raiders, seemingly had 80% Raider fans.

This experiment was the perfect metaphor for the Chargers season. The team experimented with Younghoe Koo at kicker early on; losing two games as a result. A 9-3 finish was not enough to overcome a 0-4 start to make the playoffs. Thus, one made kick, or a better-managed game against the Jaguars, stood between the Chargers and the postseason.

It is a sad reality but it is a reality that Charger fans are used to. Bad luck seems to pulse through the Chargers’ veins; it followed them in LA. That does not mean there are not positives, however, as several guys put together great seasons.

Here are the Chargers’ offensive and defensive MVPs for the team’s inaugural season in Los Angeles.