1972 San Diego Chargers season

The 1972 San Diego Chargers season was the franchise's third season in the National Football League (NFL), and its 13th overall. The team failed to improve on their 6–8 record in 1971. The Chargers would get off to a poor start, as they were devoured 34-3 in their season opener at San Francisco. After their week 2 win against the Denver Broncos, the Chargers would play to a 17-17 draw with another cross-state rival, the Oakland Raiders. It was San Diego's fourth tie in 3 seasons (they tied 3 times in 1970). Even after they defeated the Baltimore Colts in the week following the tie, the Bolts would stumble the rest of the year, winning only 2 more games en route to a 4-9-1 season. This squad featured several players like Duane Thomas, Tim Rossovich, Dave Costa and John Mackey who were unwanted by most of the other NFL teams.[3]

1972 San Diego Chargers season
OwnerEugene V. Klein
General managerHarland Svare
Head coachHarland Svare
Home fieldSan Diego Stadium
Results
Record4–9–1
Division place4th AFC West
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro Bowlers
AP All-ProsNone[2]

Offseason

NFL draft
Main article: 1972 NFL draft
1972 San Diego Chargers draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
2 36 Pete Lazetich  Defensive end Stanford
3 61 Bill McClard  Kicker Arkansas
5 116 Jim Bishop  Tight end Tennessee Tech
5 130 Harry Gooden  Defensive end Alcorn State
6 141 Bruce Ward  Guard San Diego State
9 221 Fran Schmitz  Defensive tackle St. Norbert
10 246 Lon Kolstad  Linebacker Wisconsin–Whitewater
11 270 John Turner  Tight end Long Beach State
12 295 Sam Key  Linebacker Elon
13 321 Andy Selfridge  Linebacker Virginia
14 351 John Van Reenen  Defensive end Washington State
15 376 Charles Neugent  Defensive back Tuskegee
16 401 James Shaw  Defensive back Tulsa
17 423 Oscar Dragon  Running back Arizona State University
17 426 Bob Tackett  Tackle Texas at El Paso
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Roster
1972 San Diego Chargers final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

  • 34 Oscar Dragon
  • 35 Cid Edwards FB
  • 20 Mike Garrett
  • 42 Jesse Taylor
  • 38 Lee White

Wide receivers

  • 83 Mike Carter
  • 28 Chuck Dicus
  • 27 Gary Garrison
  • 46 John Sykes
  • 84 Dave Williams

Tight ends

 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

 Linebackers
  • 60 Bob Babich
  • 59 Pete Barnes
  • 50 Lee Roy Caffey
  • 66 Rick Redman
  • 82 Tim Rossovich

Defensive backs

  • 40 Joe Beauchamp CB
  • 35 Chuck Detwiler
  • 39 Lenny Dunlap CB
  • 44 Chris Fletcher FS
  • 24 Bob Howard CB
  • 23 Ray Jones
  • 30 Bryant Salter SS

Special teams

  • 10 Bill McClard K
  • 29 Dennis Partee P
 Reserve lists
  • 25 Jerry LeVias WR (IRTooltip Injured reserve)
  • 53 Mel Rogers LB (IRTooltip Injured reserve)


Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule
Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap
1 September 17 at San Francisco 49ers L 3–34 0–1 Candlestick Park 59,438 Recap
2 September 24 Denver Broncos W 37–14 1–1 San Diego Stadium 49,048 Recap
3 October 1 at Oakland Raiders T 17–17 1–1–1 Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum 53,455 Recap
4 October 8 at Baltimore Colts W 23–20 2–1–1 Memorial Stadium 55,459 Recap
5 October 15 at Miami Dolphins L 10–24 2–2–1 Miami Orange Bowl 80,010 Recap
6 October 22 at Detroit Lions L 20–34 2–3–1 Tiger Stadium 54,371 Recap
7 October 29 Kansas City Chiefs L 14–26 2–4–1 San Diego Stadium 54,533 Recap
8 November 5 Dallas Cowboys L 28–34 2–5–1 San Diego Stadium 54,476 Recap
9 November 13 Cleveland Browns L 17–21 2–6–1 San Diego Stadium 54,205 Recap
10 November 19 at Kansas City Chiefs W 27–17 3–6–1 Arrowhead Stadium 79,011 Recap
11 November 26 Houston Oilers W 34–20 4–6–1 San Diego Stadium 46,289 Recap
12 December 3 Oakland Raiders L 19–21 4–7–1 San Diego Stadium 54,611 Recap
13 December 10 at Denver Broncos L 13–38 4–8–1 Mile High Stadium 51,478 Recap
14 December 17 Pittsburgh Steelers L 2–24 4–9–1 San Diego Stadium 52,873 Recap
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Week 1: at San Francisco 49ers
Week 1: San Diego Chargers at San Francisco 49ers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chargers 3 0 003
49ers 7 17 7334

at Candlestick Park, San Francisco, California

  • Date: September 17
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: 59 °F (15.0 °C), relative humidity 74%, wind 10 mph
  • Game attendance: 59,438
  • Referee: Bernie Ulman
  • Box score
Game information

Week 2: vs. Denver Broncos
Week 2: Denver Broncos at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Broncos 7 0 0714
Chargers 13 21 0337

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: September 24
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: 68 °F (20.0 °C), relative humidity 74%, wind 13 mph
  • Game attendance: 49,048
  • Referee: Jim Tunney
  • Box score
Game information

Week 3: at Oakland Raiders
Week 3: San Diego Chargers at Oakland Raiders – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chargers 0 7 01017
Raiders 14 0 0317

at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California

  • Date: October 1
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: 61 °F (16.1 °C), relative humidity 83%, wind 10 mph
  • Game attendance: 53,455
  • Referee: Dick Jorgensen
  • Box score
Game information

Week 4: at Baltimore Colts
Week 4: San Diego Chargers at Baltimore Colts – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chargers 0 7 01017
Colts 14 0 0317

at Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland

  • Date: October 8
  • Game time: 2:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: 60 °F (15.6 °C), relative humidity 52%, wind 15 mph
  • Game attendance: 55,459
  • Referee: Fred Wyant
  • Box score
Game information

Week 5: at Miami Dolphins
Week 5: San Diego Chargers at Miami Dolphins – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chargers 3 0 0710
Dolphins 3 14 7024

at Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida

  • Date: October 15
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: 78 °F (25.6 °C), relative humidity 72%, wind 10 mph
  • Game attendance: 80,010
  • Referee: Chuck Heberling
  • Box score
Game information

Week 6: at Detroit Lions
Week 6: San Diego Chargers at Detroit Lions – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chargers 6 0 01420
Lions 6 7 14734

at Tiger Stadium, Detroit, Michigan

  • Date: October 22
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: 47 °F (8.3 °C), relative humidity 96%, wind 9 mph
  • Game attendance: 54,371
  • Box score
Game information

Week 7: vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Week 7: Kansas City Chiefs at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 0 3 101326
Chargers 0 7 0714

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: October 29
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 62 °F (16.7 °C), relative humidity 75%, wind 8 mph
  • Game attendance: 54,533
  • Referee: Norm Schachter
  • Box score
Game information

Week 8: vs. Dallas Cowboys
Week 8: Dallas Cowboys at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cowboys 10 14 7334
Chargers 0 0 72128

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: November 5
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 64 °F (17.8 °C), relative humidity 75%, wind 9 mph
  • Game attendance: 54,476
  • Referee: Bernie Ulman
  • Box score
Game information

Week 9: vs. Cleveland Browns
Week 9: Cleveland Browns at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Browns 0 7 01421
Chargers 0 3 7717

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: November 13
  • Game time: 6:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 58 °F (14.4 °C), relative humidity 65%, wind 6 mph
  • Game attendance: 54,205
  • Box score
Game information

Week 10: at Kansas City Chiefs
Week 10: San Diego Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chargers 7 17 3027
Chiefs 7 0 3717

at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

  • Date: November 19
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. CST
  • Game weather: 32 °F (0.0 °C), relative humidity 81%, wind 11 mph, wind chill 23
  • Game attendance: 79,011
  • Referee: Jack Reader
  • Box score
Game information

Week 11: vs. Houston Oilers
Week 11: Houston Oilers at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Oilers 0 3 01720
Chargers 10 10 7734

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: November 26
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 61 °F (16.1 °C), relative humidity 51%, wind 7 mph
  • Game attendance: 46,289
  • Box score
Game information

Week 12: vs. Oakland Raiders
Week 12: Oakland Raiders at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Raiders 7 7 0721
Chargers 0 10 6319

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: December 3
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 60 °F (15.6 °C), relative humidity 71%, wind 9 mph
  • Game attendance: 54,611
  • Referee: Ed Marion
  • Box score
Game information

Week 13: at Denver Broncos
Week 13: San Diego Chargers at Denver Broncos – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chargers 0 3 3713
Broncos 7 14 17038

at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado

  • Date: December 10
  • Game time: 12:00 p.m. MST
  • Game weather: 7 °F (−13.9 °C), relative humidity 52%, wind 7 mph, wind chill -20
  • Game attendance: 51,478
  • Box score
Game information

Week 14: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Week 14: Pittsburgh Steelers at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Steelers 7 7 3724
Chargers 2 0 002

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: December 17
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 60 °F (15.6 °C), relative humidity 37%, wind 6 mph
  • Game attendance: 52,873
  • Referee: Pat Haggerty
  • Box score
Game information

Standings
AFC West
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Oakland Raiders 10 3 1 .750 3–2–1 7–3–1 365 248 W6
Kansas City Chiefs 8 6 0 .571 4–2 6–5 287 254 W3
Denver Broncos 5 9 0 .357 2–4 4–6 325 350 W2
San Diego Chargers 4 9 1 .321 2–3–1 4–6–1 264 344 L3

Notable events

In their last game for the year, the Chargers became the thirty-third team in the NFL or leagues that merged with the NFL to score only a safety in a full game. This unusual occurrence has been repeated only five times since: by the 1980 Buffalo Bills, the 1983 Minnesota Vikings, the 1993 Cincinnati Bengals, the 2011 Atlanta Falcons (the only team to do so in a playoff game) and the 2013 Jacksonville Jaguars.

References
  1. "1972 NFL Pro Bowlers". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  2. "1972 NFL All-Pros". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  3. Anderson, Dave. "Sports of The Times: John Mackey's Week," The New York Times, Tuesday, September 19, 1972. Retrieved October 22, 2020
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