1961 San Diego Chargers season

[2] Five days later, owner Barron Hilton professed both disappointment at a crowd of under 12,000, and hope for an increase once the regular season began, especially if Los Angeles fielded a winning team.

[3] In the event, the Chargers pulled under 18,000 for their regular season opener, peaked with 21,805 against the eventual AFL champion Oilers, and mustered fewer than 10,000 against Denver on December 11, the day they clinched their division.

This move was made with the consent of the Chargers' head coach and general manager, Sid Gillman, amid fears that broadcasters might be put off by rows of empty seats in the showpiece game.

[9] With the Chargers failing to make an impact in Los Angeles, San Diego was rumoured as a likely alternative location for the team as early as December 1960, with the AFL Title game still to be played.

[12] Jack Murphy, a journalist with the San Diego Union, was instrumental in building local enthusiasm for the Chargers;[13] by late January, advanced ticket sales stood at approximately 24,000.

[14] Hilton met with San Diego City Council on January 25, agreeing a contract that would see renovations to Balboa Stadium; its capacity was boosted from 23,000 to 34,000 by the construction of an upper deck, beginning in May 1961.

[20] San Diego also signed their second-round pick, running back Keith Lincoln, despite competition from the Chicago Bears and a Canadian team.

Lincoln was persuaded by a higher salary, the presence of Gillman and, having played college football at Washington State, the opportunity to stay on the west coast.

[25][26] San Diego also suffered numerous defeats in the bidding war with NFL clubs, including a notable pair of UCLA alumni who signed with the 49ers: Billy Kilmer, who went on to start at quarterback for Washington in Super Bowl VII,[27] and Jimmy Johnson, who stayed in San Francisco for his entire sixteen-year career, and was enshrined in the Hall of Fame in 1994.

Lowe scored on a 72-yard punt return, rookie Lincoln took a short pass from Kemp 63 yards for another touchdown, and Faison got on the scoresheet with a safety.

[49] On the field, the Chargers repeated as Western Division champions, this time with a 12–2 record, before losing to the Oilers in the title game for the second straight year.

Charlie McNeil led the team with nine interceptions, which stood as a club record until Antonio Cromartie broke it 46 years later (albeit in a 16-game regular season).

[61] Blair missed the extra point, but kicked a pair of field goals in the first half, while Allen, Faison and McNeil each intercepted Dallas quarterback Cotton Davidson.

[62] The Texans scored for the first time with a field goal early in the 4th quarter; they then recovered a Kemp fumble in Charger territory, but Gibson ended the threat with an interception.

Oakland had lost their opener 55–0, and fared only slightly better here; on the third play of the game, Harris intercepted a Tom Flores pass and returned it 41 yards for a touchdown.

Houston were threatening to break a 3–3 tie in the 2nd quarter when McNeil intercepted a George Blanda pass at his own 7-yard line, and returned it for 76 yards up the right sideline.

[73] A 35-yard catch by Norton set up a Blair field goal in the final five minutes of the 2nd quarter, before the Patriots scored a special-teams touchdown of their own, running the ball back to the end zone when Lowe fumbled a punt return.

[75] The Titans turned a Kemp interception into a field goal late in the third quarter, and trailed by only seven points as the teams exchanged punts on the next four possessions.

Allen continued his good form, snagging two of the Chargers' five picks, but broke his ankle while returning the second of these and missed the rest of the season.

[84] With their nearest rivals, the Dallas Texans, standing at 3–5, San Diego needed only one win from their five remaining games to repeat as division champions.

[86] The Broncos outgained San Diego by 157 yards to 32 in the first half, scoring on 4th and goal from inside the one, and getting a further two points when a long snap went over punter Maguire's head for a safety.

A 20-yard punt return by Gibson set the Chargers up at the Denver 15, but Kocourek's touchdown catch was ruled out by penalty before Kemp threw an interception on 4th down.

Starting at their own five with 2:04 on the clock and two timeouts, the Broncos made slow progress, converting a 4th down to stay alive but only getting as far as their 47-yard line, from where Tripucka threw an incomplete pass as time expired.

The Texans went three-and-out, and on the next play Kocourek took a screen pass 61 yards for a touchdown, benefitting from Sherman Plunkett's key downfield block.

San Diego struck back at the start of the 2nd quarter when Lincoln raced 57 yards down the right sideline for the first punt-return touchdown in franchise history.

[98] Shortly before halftime, Faison deflected a pass which Hudson then intercepted and returned 5 yards for a touchdown, putting the Chargers ahead to stay.

[101] The Chargers crossed midfield only three times in fifteen possessions, with their best penetration being the Boston 31; they already trailed 24–0 at that point, and the drive ended when Kemp threw the third of his four interceptions.

Despite the one-sided defeat, Hayes caught 3 passes for 100 yards, while Harris and Zeman added to San Diego's record-setting interceptions haul.

Blanda was intercepted by McNeil on the next Oiler drive, and Norton's 28-yard catch put San Diego in position for Blair's 12-yard field goal, reducing the deficit to seven points early in the final quarter.

[109] Kemp won $500 as the team MVP; though Allen had broken his ankle during the week 9 victory over New York and missed the rest of the season, he was still honored with two awards.