Los Angeles Chargers 2017 schedule release: Games, dates and times
By Brad Weiss
The Chargers will join the Rams in Los Angeles for the 2017 NFL season, but will have to play in a soccer stadium for the next few years.
For the first time in over 50 years, the Chargers will no longer be playing their home games in San Diego. During the offseason, the Bolts made the move to Los Angeles, becoming the second franchise to do so in as many years. They have no stadium right now, and until the Los Angeles Rams new facility is done, the Chargers will have to play in a 30,000 seat soccer stadium.
Quarterback Philip Rivers is still one of the more productive players in the game at his position, and does not appear to be slowing down. The 2016 Chargers battled through a ton of injuries last season, as well as letting some close games slip away late in the fourth quarter. They were a lot better than their record, and will head to Los Angeles in much shape than the Rams were when they left St. Louis.
These are Los Angeles’ home and away opponents:
Home: Oakland, Kansas City, Denver, Miami, Buffalo, Washington, Philadelphia, Cleveland
Away: Oakland, Kansas City, Denver, New England, New York Jets, New York Giants, Dallas, Jacksonville
The slate is rough for the Chargers in their first season in Los Angeles, as they have to head east to play the likes of New England, Dallas, and the New York Jets and Giants. It will be interesting to see what their stadium looks like, as the StubHub Center is used to playing host to soccer games. Still, this team has a good amount of talent on both sides of the ball, and will pick at No. 7 in next month’s NFL Draft.
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Los Angeles locked up Melvin Gordon on defense this offseason, and they should get star wide receiver Keenan Allen back healthy for 2017. The offense was pretty solid without Allen last year, and if Rivers can avoid the unnecessary turnovers, they should be able to put up points once again. The defense is always the wild card for the Chargers, but they do have some nice pieces in place as they try to navigate a very solid AFC West Division.