1968 San Diego Chargers season
The 1968 Season was the 9th season for the San Diego Chargers as a professional AFL franchise; the team improved on their 8–5–1 record from 1967, finishing at 9–5. This was also Sid Gillman's final full year as Chargers head coach.
| 1968 San Diego Chargers season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Eugene V. Klein |
| General manager | Sid Gillman |
| Head coach | Sid Gillman |
| Home field | San Diego Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 9–5 |
| Division place | 3rd Western Division |
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
| All-AFL | 5[1]
|
| AFL All-Stars | |
Offseason
NFL/AFL Draft
| 1968 San Diego Chargers draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Russ Washington * | Tackle | Missouri | |
| 1 | 18 | Jim Hill | Cornerback | TAMUK | |
| 2 | 43 | Bill Lenkaitis | Center | Penn State | |
| 4 | 100 | Ken Dyer | Defensive back | Arizona State University | |
| 5 | 129 | Bill Perry | Tight end | Kent State | |
| 7 | 183 | Lane Fenner | Wide receiver | Florida State | |
| 8 | 209 | Elliot Gammage | Tight end | Tennessee | |
| 9 | 237 | Grundy Harris | Running back | Southern | |
| 11 | 291 | Dennis Partee | Kicker / Punter | SMU | |
| 12 | 317 | Jeff Queen | Linebacker | Morgan State | |
| 13 | 345 | Fred Combs | Defensive back | North Carolina State | |
| 14 | 371 | Jim Campbell | Linebacker | West Texas A&M | |
| 15 | 399 | Dan Kramarczyk | Tackle | Dayton | |
| 15 | 403 | Bob Wells | Tackle | Johnson C. Smith | |
| 16 | 425 | Dick Farley | Safety | Boston University | |
| 17 | 453 | Dan Andrews | Tight end | West Texas A&M | |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
Roster
Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends |
Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
|
Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
|
Reserve lists
| ||||||
Regular season
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 6 | Cincinnati Bengals | W 29–13 | 1–0 | San Diego Stadium | 33,687 | Recap |
| 2 | Bye | ||||||
| 3 | September 21 | Houston Oilers | W 30–14 | 2–0 | San Diego Stadium | 46,217 | Recap |
| 4 | September 29 | at Cincinnati Bengals | W 31–10 | 3–0 | Nippert Stadium | 28,642 | Recap |
| 5 | October 5 | at New York Jets | L 20–23 | 3–1 | Shea Stadium | 63,786 | Recap |
| 6 | October 13 | at Oakland Raiders | W 23–14 | 4–1 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 53,257 | Recap |
| 7 | October 20 | Denver Broncos | W 55–24 | 5–1 | San Diego Stadium | 42,953 | Recap |
| 8 | October 27 | at Kansas City Chiefs | L 20–27 | 5–2 | Municipal Stadium | 50,344 | Recap |
| 9 | November 3 | Miami Dolphins | W 34–28 | 6–2 | San Diego Stadium | 37,284 | Recap |
| 10 | November 10 | at Boston Patriots | W 27–17 | 7–2 | Fenway Park | 19,278 | Recap |
| 11 | November 17 | at Buffalo Bills | W 21–6 | 8–2 | War Memorial Stadium | 27,993 | Recap |
| 12 | November 24 | New York Jets | L 15–37 | 8–3 | San Diego Stadium | 51,175 | Recap |
| 13 | December 1 | at Denver Broncos | W 47–23 | 9–3 | Mile High Stadium | 35,312 | Recap |
| 14 | December 8 | Kansas City Chiefs | L 3–40 | 9–4 | San Diego Stadium | 51,174 | Recap |
| 15 | December 15 | Oakland Raiders | L 27–34 | 9–5 | San Diego Stadium | 40,698 | Recap |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | |||||||
Week 1: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bengals | 7 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 13 |
| Chargers | 10 | 0 | 13 | 6 | 29 |
at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California
- Date: September 6
- Game weather: 71 °F (21.7 °C), relative humidity 75%, wind 11 mph
- Game attendance: 33,687
- Box score
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 3: vs. Houston Oilers
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oilers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| Chargers | 3 | 6 | 0 | 21 | 30 |
at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California
- Date: September 21
- Game weather: 66 °F (18.9 °C), relative humidity 62%, wind 8 mph
- Game attendance: 46,217
- Box score
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 4: at Cincinnati Bengals
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chargers | 0 | 17 | 0 | 14 | 31 |
| Bengals | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
at Nippert Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio
- Date: September 29
- Game weather: 62 °F (16.7 °C), relative humidity 63%, wind 5 mph
- Game attendance: 28,642
- Box score
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 5: at New York Jets
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chargers | 0 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 20 |
| Jets | 3 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 23 |
at Shea Stadium, New York, New York
- Date: October 5
- Game weather: 53 °F (11.7 °C), relative humidity 48%, wind 15 mph
- Game attendance: 63,786
- Box score
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 6: at Oakland Raiders
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chargers | 10 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 23 |
| Raiders | 0 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 7: vs. Denver Broncos
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Broncos | 3 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
| Chargers | 3 | 28 | 10 | 14 | 55 |
at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California
- Date: October 20
- Game time: 1:04 p.m. PDT
- Game weather: 65 °F (18.3 °C), relative humidity 76%, wind 7 mph
- Game attendance: 42,953
- Referee: Bob Finley
- Box score
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 8: at Kansas City Chiefs
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chargers | 0 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 20 |
| Chiefs | 7 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 27 |
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 9: vs. Miami Dolphins
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dolphins | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
| Chargers | 7 | 10 | 7 | 10 | 34 |
at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California
- Date: November 3
- Game time: 1:04 p.m. PST
- Game weather: 63 °F (17.2 °C), relative humidity 80%, wind 8 mph
- Game attendance: 37,284
- Referee: John McDonough
- Box score
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 10: at Boston Patriots
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chargers | 7 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 27 |
| Patriots | 3 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 17 |
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 11: at Buffalo Bills
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chargers | 7 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| Bills | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 12: vs. New York Jets
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jets | 10 | 17 | 3 | 7 | 37 |
| Chargers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 8 | 15 |
at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California
- Date: November 24
- Game weather: 60 °F (15.6 °C), relative humidity 87%, wind 6 mph
- Game attendance: 51,175
- Box score
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 13: at Denver Broncos
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chargers | 21 | 10 | 0 | 16 | 47 |
| Broncos | 3 | 14 | 6 | 0 | 23 |
at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado
- Date: December 1
- Game time: 2:00 p.m. MST
- Game weather: 29 °F (−1.7 °C), relative humidity 54%, wind 9 mph, wind chill 21
- Game attendance: 35,312
- Referee: Ben Dreith
- Box score
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 14: vs. Kansas City Chiefs
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chiefs | 7 | 14 | 14 | 5 | 40 |
| Chargers | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 15: vs. Oakland Raiders
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raiders | 3 | 7 | 14 | 10 | 34 |
| Chargers | 3 | 10 | 6 | 8 | 27 |
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Standings
| AFL Western Division | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | PF | PA | STK | ||
| Oakland Raiders | 12 | 2 | 0 | .857 | 6–2 | 453 | 233 | W8 | |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 12 | 2 | 0 | .857 | 7–1 | 371 | 170 | W5 | |
| San Diego Chargers | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 5–3 | 382 | 310 | L2 | |
| Denver Broncos | 5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 1–7 | 275 | 404 | L3 | |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 3 | 11 | 0 | .214 | 1–7 | 215 | 329 | L3 | |
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings in the AFL.
References
- "1968 AFL All-Pros". pro-football-reference.com.
- "1968 AFL All-Stars". pro-football-reference.com.