Just break up

MATTHEW ROBERSON | SPORTS EDITOR | @mroberson22

After openly flirting with the glitz and glamour of Los Angeles, the underachieving San Diego Chargers have taken the first step toward endearing themselves to the fans that they so nearly walked out on.

The team’s owner, Dean Spanos, seemingly said all the right things to ease the hatred he’s been receiving from the organization’s downtrodden fan base. In a recent statement, the franchise’s embattled leader said that while he has a deal in place that could eventually result in the Bolts joining the Rams in L.A., he is still striving toward a deal that would build a new stadium in San Diego.

With that announcement, the Chargers will remain in their longtime home for at least one more year.

The whole ordeal conjures up comparisons to a relationship in which a breakup seems both imminent and beneficial. Rather than dumping them, the Chargers have made their final attempt to win back the hearts of San Diegans who they’ve been torturing for months.

After an immensely disappointing 4-12 season which was clouded by constant relocation rumors, a northern movement seemed to be the conclusion that this story was destined for.

With the declaration that 2016 would be the 56th season of professional football in San Diego, the team has created a feeling that next season will be nothing more than a farewell tour. History tells us that a new stadium within San Diego County will likely never come to fruition.

Also, the massive media market that Los Angeles provides is certainly economically enticing. If the Chargers’ executives are met with choosing between the interests of their fans and the team’s history in San Diego, or a shiny new stadium in the West Coast’s most populated area, then they will almost surely flee as soon as the final seconds tick off the 2016 season.

While it remains unclear how the future of San Diego’s football team will shake out, the writing’s on the wall for what would be an unceremonious divorce. But keep your chins up, Charger fans.

In what could potentially be the final NFL season at Qualcomm Stadium, the home team will welcome the Jaguars, Titans, and Buccaneers. It is fitting that the Chargers’ lame duck season will feature a home schedule full of them.