The Loop
This ridiculously bad stat will make you feel sad for the two Chargers fans out there
Chris Graythen
Through five weeks of the NFL season (well, almost five), it's a tough call on which fanbase has suffered the most. The most popular pick is probably the Atlanta Falcons, who have blown multiple leads as bad, if not worse, than the one they blew in the Super Bowl. They've wasted Julio Jones' prime, waited too long to fire Dan Quinn and will likely have to completely start over in 2021. Brutal stuff.
The New York Jets? Certainly in the conversation. The whole "no Super Bowls since Namath" thing is still very real, and it doesn't appear to be changing any time soon. The New York Giants? Nope, they've had too much recent success. The Cleveland Browns? Always a candidate, but a 4-1 start has their fanbase feeling good for the first time in a long time.
The L.A. Chargers have a pretty good case, especially when taking this ridiculously painful stat into consideration:
Sheesh. Like a knife to the gut. This obviously includes the Bolts' last two weeks, when they lead the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 24-7 and lost 38-31, and when they led the New Orleans Saints 20-3 and lost 30-27 on Monday night. Oh wait, this includes their last FOUR weeks. In Week 2, the Chargers had a 17-6 lead against the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs in the third quarter, only to fall in OT 23-20. The following week, the Chargers nearly pulled off a miracle hook-and-ladder on the final play, but poor execution led to a 21-16 defeat against the Carolina Panthers.
This season, it's a bit more bearable for the two Chargers fans out there. It appears as though they have a franchise quarterback in Justin Herbert, and these close games are great experience for him (he put them in position to win on Monday night and the kicker blew it). These losses are only improving their draft position. The future actually looks quite good, as long as that future doesn't include head coach Anthony Lynn.