4 greatest one-hit wonders in Chargers history
If only these Chargers could have replicated the best season of their careers.
By Jason Reed
There are a lot of great players that have donned the powder blue in LA Chargers history. The likes of LaDainian Tomlinson, Philip Rivers, Antonio Gates and Junior Seau all played at an elite level and did so for many years.
But not every elite season comes from an all-time great. Being able to string together several elite seasons is what gets you in the history books, but what about if someone had just one elite season with the team and then never re-lived it?
Just like A-Ha's 'Take on Me', that is considered a one-hit wonders. Players who showed for one year that they could play at an elite level for the Chargers but were never able to do it again. And there are some great ones.
Greatest one-hit wonders in Chargers history: 4. Eric Metcalf
Eric Metcalf truly is the definition of a one-hit wonder as he is the only player on this list to play exactly one season with the Chargers. The other players that made the list at least played multiple years, Metcalf got in and got out.
Metcalf spent the 1997 season with the Chargers and in that season he earned Pro Bowl and First Team All-Pro honors. Unlike others on this list, Metcalf's main contributions did not come on offense or defense as he was a return man on special teams.
Metcalf led the league (and established a career-high) with three punt-return touchdowns for the Chargers in 1997 while averaging 10.9 yards per return. Funnily enough, he hardly returned kicks as he returned 16 kickoffs as opposed to 45 punts.
Most of Metcalf's career was spent with the Cleveland Browns but he did play for seven different teams when it was all said and done. Metcalf, unfortunately, was included in the Chargers' trade-up in the 1998 NFL Draft to select Ryan Leaf.