There is something weird and uncomfortable about the now Los Angeles Chargers (that’s still hard to say), coming back to their former practice headquarters in San Diego just north of Qualcomm Stadium for their spring workouts to get ready for playing their first season in L-A since abandoning the city they called home for more than 50 years.
Their new practice field up in L-A is not ready yet so they’re back here doing them.
To see the video of Charger players running around and working out and talking to the media for a moment looked like old times, life as usual in San Diego sports.
But it was anything but usual. It felt unusual.
The public is not invited to these pre-pre-season workouts in at their former home. The Chargers know they would probably be pelted with whatever old souvenirs their San Diego fans are still trying to get rid of since Dean Spanos announced that fateful night they were packing up and heading north.
As someone on social media put it; having this now L-A team that kissed San Diego goodbye back here in our backyard is like a guy who divorces his wife and then asks if he can come back and take a shower.
A lot of fans are saying the Chargers need to stay away, They left us. And they shouldn’t be hanging around here.
Let us move on and don’t make it worse by showing your face here.
Charger player Antonio Gates says it’s a bittersweet time. Not sure for whom the situation is sweet. But for the fans who supported this team, through all those years, and just went through the pain of losing them, there’s nothing sweet about it, only bitter.