7 Best Los Angeles Chargers of All Time, Ranked

I often think back to the Chargers’ 2006 season and wonder what it would’ve been like if online football betting was around then. 

Waiting to see the NFL odds for running back LaDainian Tomlinson to score a touchdown game-in, game-out would’ve been the equivalent of must-see TV if the BetMGM online sportsbook was around then. 

Without question, Tomlinson was one of the best Chargers of all time, but beyond him, I want to cover six players I view as the best to ever suit up in the powder-blue jerseys. 

Find my list of the top seven Chargers of all time below. 

7 Best Los Angeles Chargers of All Time, Ranked

1. LaDainian Tomlinson

Did you expect me to put anyone else here? 

Tomlinson was utterly dominant during the majority of his time with the Chargers, rushing for 12,490 yards. For context, the next closest rusher is Paul Lowe, with 4,972 yards. 

He also scored 138 touchdowns, which is exactly 100 more than Lowe. 

Tomlinson averaged nearly 89 rushing yards per game, and if you played fantasy football in the mid-2000s and especially happened to have him on your team in 2006, you were handsomely rewarded as he rushed 348 times for 1,815 yards and 28 touchdowns while adding 56 receptions for 508 yards and three more scores. 

In 2006, Tomlinson was the NFL MVP, the Offensive Player of the Year, the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year, and more. 

During his time with the Chargers, he was a three-time first-team All-Pro, a three-time second-team All-Pro, went to five Pro Bowls, led the NFL in rushing twice and rushing touchdowns three times, and was the scoring leader in 2006. 

When Ladainian Tomlinson ran for 243 yards against the Raiders and became the first 1,000 yard rusher to have 100+ catches in the same year. 12/28/2003 pic.twitter.com/U9tmzxf5hX

— ImBearingDown (@ImBearingDown) May 16, 2024

The Chargers retired his No. 21, and he’s also enshrined in the College and Pro Football Hall of Fames. 

2. Junior Seau

Seau goes down as not only one of the best Chargers of all time but one of the best pure football players ever. 

He played for the Chargers from 1990 to 2002 before finishing his career with the Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots. 

Seau is the Chargers all-time leader in solo tackles (1,287), second in assists (193), fifth in forced fumbles (11), and he also recorded 47 sacks. He accomplished all of this in 200 games, which is tied for fourth in franchise history. 

He was the NFL Man of the Year in 1994, a six-time first-team All-Pro, and a three-time second-team All-Pro. He made it to the Pro Bowl in all but one of his seasons with the Chargers, and the team retired his No. 55. 

Seau is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 

3. Philip Rivers

From the trade with the New York Giants involving Eli Manning to playing in the 2007-08 postseason with a torn ACL, Rivers had quite a storied career with the Chargers before sailing into the sunset with the Indianapolis Colts for the 2020 campaign.

Rivers was 5-7 in the playoffs with the Chargers. Still, he holds franchise records in pass attempts (7,591), passing yards (59,271), passing touchdowns (397), and completions (4,908). No one has started more games at quarterback in franchise history than him. 

He was the NFL Comeback Player of the Year in 2013 after passing for 4,478 yards and 32 touchdowns. Rivers made it to eight Pro Bowls, was the passing yards leader in 2010, co-leader in passing touchdowns in 2008, passer rating leader in 2008, and led the league in completion percentage in 2013 at 69.5%. 

4. Dan Fouts

I went back and forth between Fouts and Rivers as to who should top who, but Rivers’ passing numbers were too good to ignore. 

Still, Fouts came from an era with the “Air Coryell” offence under head coach Don Coryell that led to some eye-popping statistics in that time. 

Fouts was the 1982 NFL Offensive Player of the Year. If you’ll recall, that was the year of the strike-shortened season. In nine games, he passed for 2,883 yards and 17 touchdowns. Fun fact: He lost the MVP award in 1982 to Mark Moseley, a kicker for Washington. 

Before that season, though, Fouts was passing for well over 4,000 yards from 1979 to 1981, including 4,802 in 1981. 

For reference, the next closest in 1981 was Minnesota Vikings quarterback Tommy Kramer with 3,912 yards. Fouts and the Air Coryell offence helped revolutionize the NFL. 

Today, Fouts is second all-time in Chargers history in passing yards (43,040), passing touchdowns (254), and attempts (5,604). 

He was a two-time first-team All-Pro, a two-time second-team All-Pro, made it to six Pro Bowls, led the league in passing for four straight seasons, and in two of those years led in passing touchdowns, and was the NFL completion percentage leader in 1979. 

His No. 14 was retired by the Chargers and he’s also enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 

5. Antonio Gates

While Fouts and the Air Coryell offence help revolutionize football, no tight end has done more for the game than Gates. 

His statistics for college football consist of zero catches for zero yards and zero touchdowns. 

Why? He never played college football. A basketball player at Kent State, Gates had a workout with the Chargers, they signed him, and he went on to post 955 catches for 11,841 yards, and 116 touchdowns in his 16-year career. 

Pretty crazy, right? 

Those numbers place Gates atop the Chargers’ record book in all three categories.

He also was a four-time first-team All-Pro, a two-time second-team All-Pro, made it to eight Pro Bowls, was part of the NFL 2000s All-Decade Team and is in the Chargers Hall of Fame. 

6. Kellen Winslow

Before the Chargers had Gates, they had another legendary tight end from 1979 to 1987 named Kellen Winslow. 

He was a three-time first-team All-Pro, received one second-team All-Pro nod, was a five-time Pro Bowler, and led the league in receptions in back-to-back years (1980 and 1981). The team retired his No. 80. 

Today, he ranks sixth all-time in Chargers history in receiving yards, fourth in receptions, and sixth in receiving touchdowns. 

Winslow is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 

7. Lance Alworth

Before Gates and Winslow, the Chargers had another receiving threat in Alworth. 

No, he wasn’t a tight end—he played receiver—but he was electrifying for his era, which spanned from 1962 to 1970. 

During his Chargers tenure, he recorded 493 catches for 9,584 yards and 81 touchdowns. 

Those marks rank sixth, third, and second in franchise history, respectively.

He held the receiving yards record from 1970 until Gates passed him during the 2013 season. 

Alworth was a six-time first-team All-AFL selection, a seven-time AFL All-Star, led the AFL in receiving yards, receptions, and touchdowns three times, and the Chargers retired his No. 19. 

Alworth is in both the College and Pro Football Hall of Fame.