The easiest way to be a knowledgeable Chargers fan

I am consistently blown away when I meet fans of the San Diego Chargers only to find out that their main source of information about the team, outside of actually watching the games, is ESPN.

Look, ESPN brought sports coverage to where it is today. They deserve credit for the current state of sports television the same way The Rolling Stones deserve credit for the current state of rock and roll. It doesn't mean you should run out and buy the next Stones album. Seriously, don't do that. Also, don't rely on ESPN to be your main source of information about your favorite football team unless that team is the New England Patriots or the New York Jets.

Here are my suggestions on becoming a "knowledgeable Chargers fan":

Step 1: The Classroom (Bolts from the Blue)

This one is pretty obvious, right? Check this site daily. More than once a day, actually. Read the posts written by our staff and read the articles linked to in the daily links each morning. I can't think of another place that gives you as much information and knowledge about the Chargers, otherwise that would be step 1.

Step 2: The Bar (Twitter)

I know I push Twitter a lot. I know some people are anti-Twitter. I don't know what to tell you. I try to include as much of the good Twitter conversations into posts here at BFTB, but something always gets lost.

Even if you never tweet, get a twitter account and start following people. Here's a list of everyone on the BFTB staff so that you can follow them. Here's a list of current Chargers players that I try to keep as current as possible. Give it a week and find yourself in the middle of some of the best football conversations you've never had at the bar with your friends.

Step 3: Church (Facebook/Google+)

This is where you spread the good word about knowledge. This is where you share posts about Ken Whisenhunt's offense fixing Rivers so that your friends and family (and former high school classmates) that root for the Chargers can read it and feel better about the future of their favorite football team.

Oh, also, Like us on Facebook and + us on Google+ so that you can be in the loop on what we're doing on those sites as well (it's not much yet, but there's a ton planned for the upcoming preseason/season).

Step 4: The Bake Sale (Reddit)

Let's be honest, Reddit is a popularity contest. Links and comments get voted on to determine which one gets to sit at the top of the front page, and nerds with calculators (that's us) are sometimes threatened with banishment.

Most have a love/hate relationship with Reddit, and I am no different. That being said, the Chargers subreddit is pretty great and occasionally breaks news even before Twitter (which, for non-twitter folk, is insane). We put a lot of our posts on that subreddit, or the big NFL one, and wait for the masses to either burn us down or hold us high on their shoulders. It's fun!

Step 5 (for women only): Pinterest

I still have no idea what Pinterest is. I've heard it's pretty good for Chargers fans, though.

Get going!

Training camp and the preseason are almost here. If there's ever a point in the year when you need to be tapped in to Chargers news and information, that's it.

I'll assume, since you're reading this, that you've already accomplished Step 1. Step 1 is enough to become a knowledgeable Chargers fan, but it's also the bare minimum and leaves you reliant upon us for information. Go out there and find some info of your own! Get into twitter-wars that require you to do research! Spread knowledge to the masses!