Norv Turner’s Chargers are sitting at 5-8 in the vaunted AFC West, currently tied with the 49ers for the most pathetic version of second place in the NFL. Three of their listless wins have come against the Chiefs (2-11) and the Raiders (3-10). Courageous stuff indeed.

So naturally, with a surprisingly subpar record for a team that went to the AFC Championship just one year ago, many would assume injuries had to be their undoing, a fair thought when attempting to figure out what exactly happened to them.

They’ve certainly been dealt a few setbacks, most notably the knee injury to Shawne Merriman, who for all intents and purposes has been gone from the get-go. (Sure, fans can point to the Ed Hochuli game, but it’d be a reach to blame the abomination their season has become on something that happened in Week 2.)

That injury argument loses steam pretty quickly though when you consider key players lost by the Patriots (Brady), Cowboys (Romo) and Giants (Strahan retiring, Osi), all teams who like San Diego, made the playoffs last year. However, despite the setbacks and playing in better divisions than the Chargers, each of the three aforementioned teams have managed to stay respectable, in fact, none of them have a record below 8-5. And keep in mind, Dallas has Wade Phillips weaving his Crayola wand.

Which leads us to the coaching problem and San Diego’s questionable direction. After Marty Schottenheimer finished 14-2 in 2007, coming up short at home against the Pats in the playoffs, his team was still viewed as a lock to be a force in the AFC for years to come. He was instead fired in favor of Norv Turner. Read that sentence again.

Short of running on the field and blocking a game winning field goal attempt by his own kicker, how could any coach be fired in favor of Norv Turner after finishing with a record of 14-2?

Yes, Turner’s Chargers went to the AFC Championship last year, but his fingerprints were barely on that team. This year, the push-up bra is off, the cleavage has vanished and Charger fans are staring blankly at the saggy-titted reality that is the Norv Turner era.

Unless they win their last three games, the Chargers will finish under .500 in a putrid division where incompetence appears to be encouraged. 14-2 feels like ten years ago. Well done, San Diego.