1965 San Diego Chargers season

The 1965 San Diego Chargers season was their sixth as a professional AFL franchise; the team improved on their 8–5–1 record in 1964. Head Coach Sid Gillman led the Chargers to their fifth AFL West title with a 9–2–3 record, before losing the AFL Championship Game to the Buffalo Bills for the second consecutive season. It would prove to be the Chargers' last post-season appearance until 1979.^[1]

San Diego took the lead in the AFL Western division early in the season, as they won five of their first seven games and tied the other two. They maintained first place despite two midseason defeats and finished with three wins in a row, clinching their division with a game to spare. During the regular season, they led the league in several key statistical categories, ranking first for rushing and passing yardage on both offense and defense. They entered the AFL Championship game as 6+1⁄2 point favorites on their own home field, but were shut out by the Bills 23–0.

Several individual Chargers had strong seasons, with the offense featuring the top passer, runner and receiver, ranked by yardage. Quarterback John Hadl, in his first season as the full time starter, threw for 2,798 yards, running back Paul Lowe set both team and league records with 1,121 yards while leading the league with 5 yards per carry, and flanker Lance Alworth's 1,602 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns are yet to be surpassed as Charger records. The defense featured strong performances by safety Bud Whitehead, cornerback Speedy Duncan (also the AFL's leading punt returner), and defensive linemen Earl Faison and Ernie Ladd. The latter two players fell out with Gillman, and declared their intention to leave at the end of the season.