The San Diego Chargers are feeling refreshed and re-tooled to be competitive this season. The team made it to the playoffs last season and now look to capitalize off momentum and get even further this year. With Philip Rivers back under center, their 2014 campaign begins with the Arizona Cardinals who area already down a big offensive performer.
The Chargers closed out the 2013 season with four straight wins to clinch a playoff sport after starting the year 5-7. They followed that up getting the 27-10 win in the wild card game over the Cincinnati Bengals, but fell to the Denver Broncos 24-17 in the AFC divisional round. The team is hoping to capitalize off that winning finish as they cannot afford a slow start for a second straight year.
Rivers was named comeback player of the year as a result to San Diego's strong season. He posted an NFL-high 69.5 completion percentage while throwing for 4,478 yards and 32 touchdowns on the year. As a result, the Chargers averaged 393.3 yards per game to rank fifth in the league in offense. However, according to Rivers they can do better.
The Chargers certainly have the offensive weapons to be a real threat. The team signed Donald Brown to join Ryan Matthews and Danny Woodhead. Antonio Gates is back to start at tight end after 11 seasons in the league. Second-year wide receiver Keenan Allen is back and healthy after putting up 1,046 yards and eight touch downs in his rookie year.
The Arizona Cardinals will counter with an impressive wide receiver group but their ground game leaves a lot to be desired. Andre Ellington appears out for the near future after undergoing a foot injury. He gathered 1,023 yards as a rookie last year. In his spot, former Pittsburgh running back Jonathan Dwyer will be the next man up. He will pair up with All-Pro receivers Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Floyd as Carson Palmer leads the unit. He had a career-high 4,274 yards and 24 touchdowns last season.
The Cardinals will be without Darnell Dockett after the Pro Bowl defensive tackle suffered a season-ending knee injury. They might also be without Tyrann Mathieu who is still recovering from a torn ACL suffered last December.
