2004 San Diego Chargers season

2004 San Diego Chargers season
2004 San Diego Chargers season
Owner	Alex Spanos
Head coach	Marty Schottenheimer
General manager	A.J. Smith
Home field	Qualcomm Stadium
Results
Record	12–4
Division place	1st AFC West
Playoff finish	Lost Wild Card Playoffs (vs. Jets) 17–20 (OT)
Pro Bowlers	RB LaDainian Tomlinson; QB Drew Brees; TE Antonio Gates
	← 2003; Chargers seasons; 2005 →;

The 2004 San Diego Chargers season was the franchise's 35th season in the National Football League (NFL), its 45th overall and the third under head coach Marty Schottenheimer. The team improved on their 4–12 record in 2003 and finished the regular season 12–4, made the playoffs for the first time in nine years, and captured their first division title since the 1994 season. In the playoffs they lost in overtime to the New York Jets. At the end of the season Marty Schottenheimer was named NFL Coach of the Year.

Offseason[]

NFL draft[]

Entering the draft, the consensus top pick was Ole Miss quarterback Eli Manning. However, Manning had said prior to the draft that he did not want to play for the Chargers and would not sign with them if he was drafted. The Chargers would strike a deal with the Giants before the draft that would shape the future of both franchises. The Chargers would select Manning first overall, as they had intended to. The Giants would then draft quarterback Philip Rivers of North Carolina State, and then swap him and two 2005 draft picks for Manning.

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
2004 San Diego Chargers draft
1	1	Eli Manning *	QB	Ole Miss	traded to NY Giants
2	35	Igor Olshansky	DT	Oregon
2	62	Terrence Kiel	S	Texas A&M	from Green Bay via Philadelphia
3	65	Nate Kaeding *	K	Iowa	From NY Giants
3	66	Nick Hardwick *	C	Purdue
4	98	Shaun Phillips *	DE	Purdue
5	133	Dave Ball	DE	UCLA
5	154	Michael Turner *	RB	NIU	from Miami
6	169	Ryan Krause	TE	Nebraska-Omaha
7	204	Ryon Bingham	DT	Nebraska
7	209	Shane Olivea	OT	Ohio State	from Atlanta
7	254	Carlos Joseph	OT	Miami (FL)
Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Personnel[]

Staff[]

**2004 San Diego Chargers staff**

	Front office Owner – Alex Spanos President/chief executive officer – Dean Spanos Executive Vice President – Michael Spanos Executive Vice President/general manager – A. J. Smith Assistant general manager/Director of Player Personnel – Buddy Nix Vice President of Football Operations – Ed McGuire Director of College Scouting – Jimmy Raye Director of Pro Scouting – Fran Foley Head coaches Head Coach – Marty Schottenheimer Assistant Head Coach – Tim Brewster Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator – Cam Cameron Quarterbacks – Brian Schottenheimer Running Backs – Clarence Shelmon Wide Receivers – James Lofton Tight Ends – Tim Brewster Offensive Line – Hudson Houck Offensive Assistant/Quality Control – Pete Carmichael, Jr.			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator – Wade Phillips Defensive Line – Wayne Nunnely Linebackers – Greg Manusky Secondary – Brian Stewart Defensive Assistant/Quality Control – John Pagano Special teams coaches Special Teams – Steve Crosby Strength and conditioning Strength and Conditioning – Dave Redding Assistant Strength and Conditioning – Matt Schiotz

^[1]

Roster[]

**2004 San Diego Chargers final roster**

	Quarterbacks 9 Drew Brees 17 Philip Rivers 7 Doug Flutie 12 Cleo Lemon Running backs 41 Lorenzo Neal FB 34 Andrew Pinnock FB 21 LaDainian Tomlinson 33 Michael Turner 24 Jesse Chatman Wide receivers 82 Reche Caldwell 87 Tim Dwight 13 Malcom Floyd 86 Keenan McCardell 88 Eric Parker 81 Kassim Osgood 80 Micah Ross Tight ends 85 Antonio Gates 89 Ryan Krause 84 Justin Peelle		Offensive linemen 60 Jason Ball C 68 Kris Dielman G 77 Toniu Fonoti G 79 Mike Goff G 61 Nick Hardwick C 72 Roman Oben T 70 Shane Olivea T 71 Courtney Van Buren T Defensive linemen 96 Dave Ball DE 91 Ryon Bingham DT 74 Jacques Cesaire DE 90 Adrian Dingle DE 92 Jason Fisk DT 99 Igor Olshansky DE 76 Jamal Williams NT 78 DeQuincy Scott DT 74 Jacques Cesaire DE		Linebackers 54 Stephen Cooper ILB 59 Donnie Edwards OLB 53 Steve Foley 58 Randall Godfrey OLB 51 Ben Leber OLB 52 Carlos Polk ILB 56 Matt Wilhelm ILB 57 Zeke Moreno ILB 95 Shaun Phillips OLB Defensive backs 45 Robb Butler 22 Sammy Davis CB 25 Jamar Fletcher CB 23 Quentin Jammer CB 48 Terrence Kiel SS 29 Drayton Florence CB 42 Clinton Hart FS 20 Jerry Wilson FS Special teams 50 David Binn LS 10 Nate Kaeding K 5 Mike Scifres P		Reserve lists Practice squad Rookies in italics

Regular season[]

Schedule[]

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Recap
1	September 12	at Houston Texans	W 27–20	1–0	Reliant Stadium	Recap
2	September 19	New York Jets	L 28–34	1–1	Qualcomm Stadium	Recap
3	September 26	at Denver Broncos	L 13–23	1–2	Invesco Field at Mile High	Recap
4	October 3	Tennessee Titans	W 38–17	2–2	Qualcomm Stadium	Recap
5	October 10	Jacksonville Jaguars	W 34–21	3–2	Qualcomm Stadium	Recap
6	October 17	at Atlanta Falcons	L 20–21	3–3	Georgia Dome	Recap
7	October 24	at Carolina Panthers	W 17–6	4–3	Bank of America Stadium	Recap
8	October 31	Oakland Raiders	W 42–14	5–3	Qualcomm Stadium	Recap
9	November 7	New Orleans Saints	W 43–17	6–3	Qualcomm Stadium	Recap
10	Bye
11	November 21	at Oakland Raiders	W 23–17	7–3	McAfee Coliseum	Recap
12	November 28	at Kansas City Chiefs	W 34–31	8–3	Arrowhead Stadium	Recap
13	December 5	Denver Broncos	W 20–17	9–3	Qualcomm Stadium	Recap
14	December 12	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 31–24	10–3	Qualcomm Stadium	Recap
15	December 19	at Cleveland Browns	W 21–0	11–3	Cleveland Browns Stadium	Recap
16	December 26	at Indianapolis Colts	L 31–34 (OT)	11–4	RCA Dome	Recap
17	January 2, 2005	Kansas City Chiefs	W 24–17	12–4	Qualcomm Stadium	Recap

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings[]

AFC West
view talk	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
⁽⁴⁾ San Diego Chargers	12	4	0	.750	5–1	9–3	446	313	W1
⁽⁶⁾ Denver Broncos	10	6	0	.625	3–3	7–5	381	304	W2
Kansas City Chiefs	7	9	0	.438	3–3	6–6	483	435	L1
Oakland Raiders	5	11	0	.313	1–5	3–9	320	422	L2

Game summaries[]

Week 1: at Houston Texans[]

Week 2: vs. New York Jets[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Jets	14	3	10	7	34
Chargers	0	7	7	14	28

Date: September 19
Location: Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, CA
Game start: 1:15PST
Game weather: 73 °F (22.8 °C), humidity 67 percent, wind 9 miles per hour (14 km/h; 7.8 kn)
TV announcers (CBS): Ian Eagle, Solomon Wilcots, and Scott Kaplan

Source: [2]

Week 3: at Denver Broncos[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Chargers	3	0	7	3	13
• Broncos	7	6	7	3	23

Date: September 26
Location: Invesco Field at Mile High, Denver, CO
Game start: 3:00MST
Game weather: 73 °F (22.8 °C), humidity 26 percent, wind 7 miles per hour (11 km/h; 6.1 kn)
Referee: Johnny Grier
TV announcers (CBS): Dick Enberg, Dan Dierdorf, and Armen Keteyian

Source: [3]

Week 4: vs. Tennessee Titans[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Titans	0	7	0	10	17
• Chargers	7	14	3	14	38

Date: October 3
Location: Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, CA
Game start: 1:15PST
Game weather: 74 °F (23.3 °C), humidity 69 percent, wind 9 miles per hour (14 km/h; 7.8 kn)
TV announcers (CBS): Bill Macatee, Steve Beuerlein, and Scott Kaplan

Source: [4]

Week 5: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Jaguars	0	7	0	14	21
• Chargers	14	7	6	7	34

Date: October 10
Location: Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, CA
Game start: 1:00PST
Game weather: 68 °F (20 °C), humidity 76 percent, wind 9 miles per hour (14 km/h; 7.8 kn)
TV announcers (CBS): Ian Eagle, Solomon Wilcots, and Scott Kaplan

Source: [5]

Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Chargers	0	14	3	3	20
• Falcons	0	7	0	14	21

Date: October 17
Location: Georgia Dome, Atlanta, GA
Game start: 1:00EST
Game weather: none (domed stadium)
TV announcers (CBS): Gus Johnson, Brent Jones

Source: [6]

Week 7: at Carolina Panthers[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Chargers	0	0	10	7	17
Panthers	6	0	0	0	6

Date: October 24
Location: Ericsson Stadium, Charlotte, NC
Game weather: 58 °F (14.4 °C), humidity 90 percent, wind 7 miles per hour (11 km/h; 6.1 kn)
TV announcers (CBS): Gus Johnson, Brent Jones

Source: [7]

Week 8: vs. Oakland Raiders[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Raiders	0	7	7	0	14
• Chargers	14	14	14	0	42

Date: October 31
Location: Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, CA
Game weather: 69 °F (20.6 °C), humidity 57 percent, wind 8 miles per hour (13 km/h; 7.0 kn)
TV announcers (CBS): Gus Johnson, Brent Jones, and Scott Kaplan

Source: [8]

Week 9: vs. New Orleans Saints[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Saints	0	7	0	10	17
• Chargers	14	6	16	7	43

Date: November 7
Location: Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, CA
Game weather: 63 °F (17.2 °C), humidity 78 percent, wind 8 miles per hour (13 km/h; 7.0 kn)
TV announcers (FOX): Thom Brennaman, JC Pearson

Source: [9]

Week 11: at Oakland Raiders[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Chargers	6	7	3	7	23
Raiders	0	7	7	3	17

Date: November 21
Location: McAfee Coliseum, Oakland, CA
Game weather: 61 °F (16.1 °C), humidity 28 percent, wind 18 miles per hour (29 km/h; 16 kn)
TV announcers (CBS): Don Criqui, Steve Tasker

Source: [10]

Week 12: at Kansas City Chiefs[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Chargers	7	7	3	17	34
Chiefs	7	10	0	14	31

Date: November 28
Location: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, MO
Game weather: 35 °F (1.7 °C), humidity 75 percent, wind 14 miles per hour (23 km/h; 12 kn)
TV announcers (CBS): Kevin Harlan, Randy Cross

Source: [11]

Week 13: vs. Denver Broncos[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Broncos	0	7	0	10	17
• Chargers	7	10	3	0	20

Date: December 5
Location: Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, CA
Game weather: 58 °F (14.4 °C), humidity 77 percent, wind 9 miles per hour (14 km/h; 7.8 kn)
TV announcers (CBS): Jim Nantz, Phil Simms, and Bonnie Bernstein

Source: [12]

Week 14: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Buccaneers	0	7	7	10	24
• Chargers	0	14	7	10	31

Date: December 12
Location: Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, CA
Game weather: 69 °F (20.6 °C), humidity 63 percent, wind 8 miles per hour (13 km/h; 7.0 kn)
TV announcers (FOX): Thom Brennaman, JC Pearson, and C.S. Keys

Source: [13]

Week 15: at Cleveland Browns[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Chargers	7	7	7	0	21
Browns	0	0	0	0	0

Date: December 19
Location: Cleveland Browns Stadium, Cleveland, OH
Game weather: 18 °F (−7.8 °C), humidity 68 percent, wind 30 miles per hour (48 km/h; 26 kn), wind chill −10 °F or −23.3 °C
TV announcers (CBS): Gus Johnson, Brent Jones

Source: [14]

San Diego clinches its first division title since 1994.

Week 16: at Indianapolis Colts[]

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Chargers	7	10	7	7	0	31
• Colts	0	9	7	15	3	34

Date: December 26
Location: RCA Dome, Indianapolis, IN
Game weather: none (domed stadium)
TV announcers (CBS): Kevin Harlan, Randy Cross

Source: [15]

Week 17: vs. Kansas City Chiefs[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Chiefs	0	3	0	14	17
• Chargers	3	14	0	7	24

Date: January 2
Location: Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, CA
Game weather: 59 °F (15 °C), humidity 87 percent, wind 9 miles per hour (14 km/h; 7.8 kn)
TV announcers (CBS): Ian Eagle, Solomon Wilcots, and Scott Kaplan

Source: [16]

Postseason[]

Round	Date	Opponent (seed)	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance
Wildcard	January 8, 2005	New York Jets (5)	L 17–20	0–1	Qualcomm Stadium	67,536

Game summaries[]

Wild Card: vs. New York Jets[]

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
• Jets	0	7	10	0	3	20
Chargers	0	7	0	10	0	17

Date: January 8
Location: Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, CA
Game weather: 55 °F (12.8 °C), humidity 86 percent, wind 8 miles per hour (13 km/h; 7.0 kn)
TV announcers (ABC): Al Michaels, John Madden, and Michele Tafoya

Source: [17]

References[]

^ 2012 San Diego Chargers Media Guide. pp. 263–264. Archived from the original on October 15, 2014. Retrieved October 28, 2014.

[1] 2012 San Diego Chargers Media Guide. pp. 263–264. Archived from the original on October 15, 2014. Retrieved October 28, 2014.

[1]

v t Los Angeles Chargers
Founded in 1960 Played in San Diego (1961–2016) Based in Inglewood, California Headquartered in Costa Mesa, California
Franchise	Franchise History in San Diego Coaches Seasons Retired numbers Hall of Fame Anniversary teams 40th 50th Starting quarterbacks First-round draft picks
Stadiums	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Balboa Stadium SDCCU Stadium San Diego stadium proposals Dignity Health Sports Park SoFi Stadium
Culture	Fearsome Foursome Air Coryell Alex Spanos "San Diego Super Chargers" Los Angeles Charger Girls Bruise Brothers
Lore	Holy Roller Epic in Miami Freezer Bowl Herschel Walker trade Snowball Game 2006 playoff game vs. New England Patriots
Rivalries	Denver Broncos Kansas City Chiefs Las Vegas Raiders
Wild card berths (3)	1995 2013 2018
Division championships (15)	1960 1961 1963 1964 1965 1979 1980 1981 1992 1994 2004 2006 2007 2008 2009
Conference championships (1)	1994
League championships (1)	1963
Media	Broadcasters KYSR Matt "Money" Smith
Current league affiliations	League: National Football League (1970–present) Conference: American Football Conference Division: West Division
Former league affiliation	League: American Football League (1960–1969)
Category

v t Los Angeles Chargers seasons
Played in San Diego (1961–2016)
1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Bold indicates AFL Championship (1960–69) or Super Bowl (1966–) victory Italics indicates AFL Championship (1960–69) or Super Bowl (1966–) appearance

2004 San Diego Chargers season

Contents

Offseason[]

NFL draft[]

Personnel[]

Staff[]

Roster[]

Regular season[]

Schedule[]

Standings[]

Game summaries[]

Week 1: at Houston Texans[]

Week 2: vs. New York Jets[]

Week 3: at Denver Broncos[]

Week 4: vs. Tennessee Titans[]

Week 5: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars[]

Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons[]

Week 7: at Carolina Panthers[]

Week 8: vs. Oakland Raiders[]

Week 9: vs. New Orleans Saints[]

Week 11: at Oakland Raiders[]

Week 12: at Kansas City Chiefs[]

Week 13: vs. Denver Broncos[]

Week 14: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers[]

Week 15: at Cleveland Browns[]

Week 16: at Indianapolis Colts[]

Week 17: vs. Kansas City Chiefs[]

Postseason[]

Game summaries[]

Wild Card: vs. New York Jets[]

See also[]

References[]