More than three dozen former Chargers players showed up at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club on Saturday near San Diego to "pose for pictures, shake hands and sign autographs" at the invitation of the track’s management, according to Kevin Acee of the SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE. It was "more celebration of life than funeral" and was as "festive as any afternoon at the seaside track should be." The mention of the Chargers name "still incites instant passion from so many, often in the form of fury." Chargers Chair Dean Spanos was "consulted for his blessing, and many current and former off-field employees were present on Saturday." But this was "not an official Chargers event," which "probably made it more palatable" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 7/23).
ROLL OUT THE WELCOME MAT: In Boston, Ben Volin reported the Chargers "took several months to sell out their new, temporary 30,000-seat stadium" in StubHub Center, and fan interest in L.A. is "somewhere between 'minimal' to 'non-existent.'" The "only way the Chargers will make an impact in L.A. is to have a great" '17 season and make the playoffs, and "much of that will fall" on QB Philip Rivers (BOSTON GLOBE, 7/23).
