Last night, I got into some pretty good trash talk on Twitter with some Charger fans. Needless to say, my allegiance to the Indianapolis Colts was a pretty good reason for them to come at me from all angles like a Dick LeBeau zone blitz. I joked about the divisional game in 2006, when New England won in San Diego (you know the year the Colts won the Super Bowl) and then they made fun of last year’s playoff game that Indy lost in San Diego. After some good ribbing (which involved a few low blows), I figured that perhaps I could take the time to throw Charger fans a bone and write about their team. Considering that they just won in New York, there might not be a better time to write about them this season. It’s like a crack head being off of crack cocaine for a few days, you have to take advantage of those days to get him to do all his serious stuff. Before we proceed, two things:

1. No I am not calling Charger fans crack heads

2. Isn’t it funny how every movie and TV show that makes a reference about cocaine is somehow linked to Miami? Quick list: Scarface, CSI Miami, Miami Vice, Bad Boys, etc..

Perhaps Miami Heat general manager should have done that research before drafting Michael Beasley. Nonetheless, my question for Charger fans is this: should San Diego be considered as a playoff favorite? Keep in mind, we just completed Week 9, so this talk is somewhat premature, but with the AFC landscape slowly taking form; we should start paying attention to the top teams. Here’s a quick look at the AFC standings:

Every contender in the AFC is flawed:

- Peyton Manning is his team's MVP but he can't run block and the Colts secondary is banged up.

-Denver has beat a few solid teams, but are they truly ready for primetime?

-Cincinnati keeps winning close games against some of the top teams in the league, but happens if they trail big?

-I still have more questions then answers about the Pats; I'm still not sure what they do well.

-Pittsburgh has trouble running the ball and Big Ben seems a little (big emphasis on little) off this year but I can still see them making the AFC title game.

-What about San Diego?

 As it stands right now, San Diego is part of the playoff picture, but will that last? Here are the teams they have to play the rest of the way: Philadelphia, @ Denver, Kansas City, @ Cleveland, @ Dallas, Cincinnati, @ Tennessee, Washington. At worst, I have San Diego going 5-3  (good for a 10-6 record)  to finish the season.   I can already hear Chargers fans trying to convince me that their team will run the table and win their next eight games. It’s possible, however based on San Diego’s output this season I wouldn’t expect it. In order for the Chargers to legitimately contend for the AFC crown, they have a few things that they need to do better. Let’s have a look at them.

In the movie Training Day, we are treated to narcotics police detective Alonzo Harris (played by Denzel Washington) who has pissed off some Russian mobsters. As a result, he must repay them the sum of one million dollars before midnight in order to avoid his death. By the end of the movie, Alonzo (by the way, this movie ironically happens in California) does not have the money and is unable to outrun the Russians as they shoot up his car at a red light. What does this have to do with the Chargers? They can’t run the ball. Each week, they play the game of “you can run but you can’t hide” against opposing teams. Look at the numbers :

Week 1 @ Oakland: 77 rushing yards

Week 2 vs Baltimore: 53 rushing yards

Week 3 vs Miami: 69 rushing yards

Week 4 @ Pittsburgh: 16 rushing yards

Week 5: Bye

Week 6 vs Denver: 73 rushing yards

Week 7 @ Kansas City: 135 rushing yards

Week 8 vs Oakland: 100 rushing yards

Week 9 @ NY Giants: 34 rushing yards

Until San Diego addresses this issue, they will struggle against good teams because they will be one dimensional. In my estimation, Philip Rivers is the best quarterback in the NFL not named Peyton Manning or Drew Brees. However, if he has to drop back with every snap and sling it out, he is going to pay for it. He takes a lot of vicious hits from defensive linemen.

In Pirates of the Caribbean 3, we see Jack Sparrow with a compass that is supposed to lead him to whatever his heart desires. Well in the case of the Chargers' opponents, their run defense has pretty much been a compass indicating where to find what it is that they seek the most (that we thing we call the end zone ). Look at the allowed rushing yards so far this season:

Week 1 @ Oakland: 148 rushing yards allowed

Week 2 vs Baltimore: 130 rushing yards allowed

Week 3 vs Miami: 149 rushing yards allowed

Week 4 @ Pittsburgh: 177 rushing yards allowed

Week 5: Bye

Week 6 vs Denver: 101 rushing yards allowed

Week 7 @ Kansas City: 121 rushing yards allowed

Week 8 vs Oakland: 99 rushing yards allowed

Week 9 @ NY Giants: 116 rushing yards allowed

The last thing a professional athlete wants to hear when his team or his play is being discussed is the dreaded word soft. Keep in mind, I am in no way calling the Chargers soft; however their run defense needs to be better if they are going to be a player in the AFC landscape. Despite their struggles running the ball on the offensive side of the ball, the biggest concern is their lack of run defense. The inability to hit guys in the backfield may end up dooming them. NFL history has shown that teams that stop the run make it far into the postseason; and until San Diego addresses that issue, they will merely be a team on the brink of being part of the elite.

#93 is right the Colts right defensive end Dwight Freeney. He comes at your offensive line off the edge with a variety of moves. He will give you the swim move, the karate chop, the bull rush and the best spin move in the NFL. Back in 2004, Dwight Freeney was arguably the best defensive end in the NFL because of all the tools he had in his shed. Well believe it or not ladies and gentlemen, despite all the accolades he received and all the havoc he wreaked into NFL backfields, I still preferred Shawne Merriman to Dwight Freeney. Merriman had blazing speed and seemed far stronger then any other offensive lineman in the NFL. So although Merriman hadn't yet refined his pass rushing techniques as well as Freeney; he seemed far more dominant and he had the cool Lights Out dance. Right now, the San Diego Chargers need that pass rushing ability. The combination of allowing teams to run the ball and failing to pressure the quarterback is a recipe for disaster. But the Chargers have been able to manage so far this season; but shouldn't count on that trend holding up. Indeed, through the first six weeks (five games) of the season, San Diego was only able to manage seven sacks. The Powder Blues were 2-3 through those five games. However, in the last three weeks, the Super Chargers have managed 14 sacks. In related news, they have won three games in a row (with two of those games coming on the road); and we have seen the Lights Out dance four times.

All in all, unless San Diego is able to rectify their weaknesses, they will be watching the playoffs from the comfort of their own homes. However, if they are able to make a few adjustments and build on their last three wins, the Chargers have the talent on paper to win the AFC. The problem though is that games are not played on paper. They are played either on Madden or on an NFL field. Can the Chargers step it up and take the conference by storm? We'll have to wait eight weeks to find out.