This Sunday, the Los Angeles Chargers begin a new era of football in Los Angeles as they take the field in their regular season home opener at StubHub Center. And we’ve got a job to do…
An NFL player’s role on Sundays is defined by his position: run routes as a receiver, carry the ball as a running back, push the pocket as a defensive lineman and so on through each spot. Every man, from talented to inept, or towering to diminutive, has a job to do. There’s an expectation that in front of their fans they will give their all in a glorious four-quarter battle for weekend supremacy. It’s an occupation they’re paid for, and one they do proudly.
So what about us? We, the thousands of fans who pay sums of money to watch the bloodbath, must have a role in this too?
Surely us fans haven’t forgotten that our job, our inherent duty, is to cheer for our Chargers.
Something has been lost across the last few seasons. A once proud Qualcomm stadium during the LaDainian Tomlinson days went from booming to booing in recent years. That passionate, if not frenzied fervor permeating the crowd on Sundays has become an environment akin to a public library.
I don’t blame you though; in fact, I’m frequently guilty of passiveness myself. Cheering is often best when inspired, deafening and uproarious when the team is winning. Going 4-12 and 5-11 in consecutive seasons is as close to uninspiring as it gets. We can’t feel comfortable enough to cheer even with a lead, as lately the Chargers have shown a propensity for lackluster finishes that end in a loss.
I can’t blame you for not voicing your support as loud as before. But, I implore you to try.
As preposterous as it sounds, the Chargers need our help. They need our boisterous noise when Miami takes the field on offense. When a Bolt favorite makes a play, they desire cheers of approval sounding throughout StubHub. And as a franchise, the Los Angeles Chargers need us to rally behind their cause and show them love like they’ve never seen before.
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Just remember the times when you were cheering like never before, unafraid of a hoarse throat at work the next day. Need I remind you of the throttling of Seattle, or the emotions that flowed throughout the 2015 Miami game, or the exuberance of beating Denver at home last season? That’s the environment that StubHub, along with the Chargers’ future home, needs to feel like.
So take it upon yourself to raise your voices like never before. Cheer for touchdowns, interceptions, and tackles. Cheer because beer tastes wonderful and fills your soul with fire. Cheer because next to you there’s a kid going to his first Chargers game, so that he may leave with a similar ardor that cements his heart as a blue and gold Chargers’ fan for life. At home, yell at your television. We can hear you, and we need you.
I’ll be at the home opener, as well as every single Chargers’ home game until the day I die. I know many of you will be, so there’s just one more thing I have to say to you:
Give ’em Hell.