The voice on the other end of the phone cracks with excitement.
Like only he can, Philip Rivers already has the Chargers' 2018 schedule down pat within minutes of learning the entire 16 game slate.
"Shoot, now this is a heck of an NFL schedule," he says before taking a deep breath.
For the next two minutes and 42 seconds, Rivers breaks down the entire 2018 season in one breathtaking stream of conscious ramble.
So, what stands out most to number 17?
"It's funny because every team has known their opponents now for months, but when you see them with a date, it changes things for you," he begins. "This makes it feel a little more real, and we know we're getting closer. I'm excited. Like any year, the first thing you look for is who you open with. Seeing that we open at home against the Chiefs, who have dominated our division the last couple years, it's exciting to start the year against them at StubHub Center."
Like many on the Chargers, that season opening game at home against the Chiefs is front and center.
"The first game is the only one that matters from a one-game-at-a-time approach," he says. "Obviously, they've had our number the last few years. We've lost eight in a row against them. So it's exciting to start at home against them with a division game."
From there, Rivers surveys the entire slate of games, looking for the same things he has each of his previous 14 seasons.
"I jump around to look at primetime games, and we are in Kansas City Thursday night. We played them there late at night last year as well. But then I tend to find the division games, and find any potential (bad) weather games. We have those in Pittsburgh, Kansas City and Denver in December. Those obviously could potentially have some weather issues."
Then there's the international game against the Tennessee Titans.
"Obviously we knew the London game, but you want to know when exactly that's going to be. It's almost exactly at the midpoint, and then we have the bye right there in Week 8."
That series in the middle of the year represents the most challenging part of the team's schedule. It's almost unheard of, but the Bolts will go six straight weeks without having a home game.
So, how does Rivers approach that difficult stretch?
"We have to really embrace that," he says matter of factly. "It's just like 10:00am starts on the east coast – well, so what? They're going to kick the ball off at 10:00am. Are you going to play them or not? It's the same way. Those things can only be issues if you allow them to be. There is no denying the challenge that we are going to have a home game, and then not have another one for six weeks. We're home against the Raiders, and then it's at *Cleveland, *in *London, bye, *at *Seattle and *at Oakland. That's a six-week span where we're not playing a home game. And we have four games in that span.
"I think we have to embrace that. It's, 'Hey, shoot, we're going on the road for a month. Let's go!' I think it's ok this time of year to acknowledge that, golly, we have this many road games in this stretch and all the east coast games are at 10:00am. All right, let's go play. When they kick it off we've got to be prepared and up for the challenge."
*Available to the public on a first-come, first-served basis for the first time in more than a year, new 2018 Season Ticket Memberships for the team's nine-game home slate at StubHub Center. Additionally, starting today, the Chargers have also made a limited number of single-game tickets available for purchase in select locations. To purchase a Season Ticket Membership or select single-game tickets, fans can visit www.fightforla.com/stubhub *
