1987 San Diego Chargers season

The 1987 San Diego Chargers was the franchise's 18th season in the National Football League (NFL), and the 28th overall. The team improved on their 4–12 record in 1986, finishing 8–7 but missing the playoffs. A players’ strike reduced the regular season schedule from sixteen to fifteen games. The Chargers started the season 8–1, with victories over eventual division winners Indianapolis and Cleveland, before collapsing to lose their final six games of the season, narrowly missing the playoffs. All but one of their final six losses came to teams that made the postseason.

As was the case with all NFL teams in 1987, the Chargers were obliged to field a replacement team for three weeks due to the NFLPA strike. This team, dubbed the 'Re-Chargers' by head coach Al Saunders, was made up primarily of players who had missed the final cut for an NFL squad in preseason. While the regular players picketed outside San Diego's Jack Murphy Stadium, the new Chargers won three games out of three against other replacement teams. After the strike ended, most of the regular Chargers reclaimed their jobs, though some replacements were able to keep their places in the squad beyond the end of the 1987 season.

In the twelve non-strike games, San Diego performed fairly well on defense, with defensive end Lee Williams, linebacker Billy Ray Smith and safety Vencie Glenn among the leaders. The offense, however, struggled increasingly as the season wore on. With the run game contributing little, it fell to quarterback Dan Fouts and the passing attack to produce points, but they were hampered by sacks, turnovers and Fouts' struggle to recapture his mid-career form. It would be his final season in the NFL, having spent his entire fifteen-year career in San Diego. Also retiring after the season was tight end Kellen Winslow, ending his nine-year career with a fifth Pro Bowl berth.