Will 2011 Schedule Allow Chargers to Start Strongly?

With the release by the NFL of the full 2011 schedule on Tuesday, Chargers fans can start planning their viewing options for fall Sundays -- and Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays for that matter.

There are a few quirks in the lineup of games, including for the first time, a Sunday afternoon on which the Bolts and Padres both play at home. That Sept. 25 date has the Chargers hosting Kansas City at 1:05, the same time the Padres are scheduled to play the Dodgers at Petco Park.

Until Petco opened in 2004, the local teams shared Qualcomm Stadium, and once the Chargers had the Mission Valley facility to themselves, the NFL still had scheduled the Bolts at home only on dates the Padres were on the road, even in the preseason.

With three of the first four games at home including the opener Sept. 11 against the Vikings, the Chargers have a chance to reverse the recent trend of slow starts to their season, though Minnesota, Kansas City and Miami won't be pushovers. The road game on Sept. 18 is at New England, always a tough place to win.

After a visit to Denver on Oct. 9, the Bolts have their bye in Week 6, then visit the Jets at the new Meadowlands (the only 10 a.m. Pacific time kickoff on the entire schedule) and Kansas City (a Monday night prime time game on Halloween) before returning home for the first time in more than a month to host the Super Bowl champion Packers on Nov. 6.

Just four days later, the Raiders arrive in town for a Thursday night game, capping a stretch of three games in 11 days. Then it's off to Chicago and a home game with Denver to round out November, followed by a Monday night game in Jacksonville.

The final two home games are Dec. 11 (Buffalo) and Dec. 18 (Baltimore in a Sunday night prime-timer). As they did last season, the Bolts finish with two road contests, a 1:05 PT Christmas Eve kickoff in Detroit and a New Year's Day game in Oakland that might decide the eventual AFC West winner.