Chargers likely hosting last game in San Diego

The San Diego Chargers are likely headed to Los Angeles in 2016.

It is always sad to see something die. Whether it be a living, breathing organism or a long-standing tradition, change is always hard. On Sunday, football fans might be seeing one of those moments when the San Diego Chargers host the Miami Dolphins at Qualcomm Stadium. The Chargers have been playing football in San Diego since 1961, making it 55 years in a city best known for it’s zoo and the large military presence.

It appears the organization will be packing up and heading toward Los Angeles for 2016, the same city the team originated in when the American Football League was created in 1960. The Chargers have enjoyed plenty of success with Hall of Fame players throughout the last 55 seasons, including a Super Bowl appearance in 1994. There have been game-changing presences in San Diego, led by Don Coryell and Kellen Winslow.

Now, it looks as though the San Diego fans will be saying goodbye to a team they love.

Many don’t feel bad for these folks. There have been ample empty seats in recent years at decrepit Qualcomm Stadium, which has been the Chargers stadium since 1967. The jokes are easy to make, but it undermines the fans who have come out and supported the team through the best and worst.

Should the Chargers leave San Diego, they will be the first team to pack up and move since the Houston Oilers relocated to Nashville for the 1997 season. The situations were similar in that both cities were not seriously engaging in talks for a new stadium, while legions of fans had all but disappeared. It is almost like the team is on life support, and the family members are coming by one last time to pay respects and then pull the plug.

There has been conversation about how the city of Los Angeles will support the Chargers to a higher degree than San Diego is, but that is yet to be proven. The City of Angels has been a graveyard for professional football in the past. Yes, Los Angeles supported the Rams throughout the better part of 35 years, until the team moved to Anaheim. From there, sections of empty seats began showing up.

The Oakland Raiders moved to Los Angeles in 1982 and won a Super Bowl in 1983. Yet, the fans stayed away in droves. The Raiders were a cultural symbol but never a supported team in Los Angeles, forcing Al Davis back to a crumbling stadium in Oakland come 1995.

In the final analysis, this is a situation that got out of hand. San Diego should have ponied up some money and helped keep the team. The taxpayers could have kicked in as well, with the league making sure the parties all came together. Instead, the Chargers are quietly exiting stage left, only to leave behind an empty stadium and memories that will endure.

This is where Air Coryell and Dan Fouts happened. This is where the powder blues and Lance Alworth roamed. This is where Junior Seau led his team to an improbable Super Bowl run.

Unfortunately, San Diego will be losing its NFL team barring a Hail Mary. Long live the Chargers. The San Diego Chargers.