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Posted by ESPN.com's Bill Williamson

	Paul Jasienski/Getty Images
	The Chargers must avoid being distracted by thoughts of avenging last season's playoff loss to the Patriots.

The San Diego Chargers would love for this week to be about the New England Patriots.

The Chargers would love to talk about revenge. You couldn't blame the Chargers for seeking retribution. After all, it was New England that knocked the Chargers out of the playoffs the past two years. It was the Patriots who danced on the Chargers' field two years ago.

The Chargers wish it could be about all of that. But it's not the right time.

"No. For us, this is not a revenge game ... It's not a revenge game at all," said San Diego running back LaDainian Tomlinson who was furious at the Patriots and their coach, Bill Belichick, after the Patriots' antics in the 2007 AFC divisional playoffs.

Sunday night's clash between the two teams will have no revenge elements for the Chargers. They just can't afford to worry about the Patriots.

It's all about the Chargers in San Diego these days.

If the Chargers don't take care of their own business in this game, getting their revenge on New England -- in the playoffs -- may not be a possibility. Thanks to a flat performance in Miami last week, the Chargers, who lost their first two games of the season by a total of three points, tumbled to 2-3.

They trail 4-1 Denver by two games in the AFC West. While the season is still young, if the Broncos, who play host to Jacksonville on Sunday, finish 6-5 in the final 11 games of the season, the Chargers will have to go 9-2 to win the division outright at 11-5.

So, forgive the Chargers if they are not obsessed with the Patriots. They just have to concentrate on themselves.

"It is a must win game for us," said Tomlinson, the heart and soul of the Chargers, in a press briefing this week. "We need a win desperately. We can't afford to drop this one."

A week ago, the Chargers had a different outlook on the season. There was no sense of urgency. Panic wasn't even in the thought process.

After the near misses against Carolina and Denver to start the season (San Diego became the first team in NFL history to lose back-to-back games after leading with 30 seconds to go in the game), the Chargers got it together and beat the New York Jets and Oakland. The Chargers outscored Oakland 25-3 in the fourth quarter to even their record at 2-2.

Last season, San Diego started 1-3 before rebounding and finishing 11-5 in the regular season record and going to the AFC championship game in which the Chargers lost at New England. This season, at 2-2, the Chargers felt like they were on the right track after another slow start.

However, after a sluggish day in Miami, the Chargers don't know what to feel.

"Obviously we've been up and down, when you lose to start the season on the last play of the game that leads itself to looking inconsistent," second-year San Diego coach Norv Turner told reporters this week. "We've had good moments and we've had some times when we've struggled. The biggest thing I think [that is] what happens when you are not playing at a high level in all three phases and that's the number one thing we've had a tough time doing -- where we've played well on offense, we've struggled on defense, where we've played good defense for a half we've struggled on offense."

Much of the Chargers' problems can be traced back to their injury woes. Tomlinson has been struggling with a turf toe injury since opening day. He is averaging just 3.7 yards per carry and he was stuffed on fourth and goal from the Miami 1-yard line in the fourth quarter last Sunday.

Tight end Antonio Gates has had a slow start after dealing with an offseason big toe injury. The offensive line has been affected by injury and receiver Chris Chambers suffered an ankle injury and he may not play against New England.

The Chargers' defense is allowing a touchdown more per game than it averaged last season.  The pass defense has been near the bottom of the NFL rankings all season. It is currently ranked 32nd in the NFL in pass defense. The Chargers clearly miss Shawne Merriman, who is out for the season with a knee injury.

Still, the Chargers know there are no excuses because of injury. All they have to do is look at their opponent Sunday. The Patriots lost their heartbeat in Tom Brady and they are 3-1. Injuries or not, the Chargers, who have road games at Buffalo and in London (against New Orleans) in the next two weeks, know they have to get it together now.

"When you find yourself 2-3 and the division leader at 4-1, certainly there's some ground to be made up," San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers said Wednesday after the Chargers' practice. "We can't make it up in one week but we understand what this can do for us as we move forward."

If the Chargers move forward enough, then, perhaps it will be time to think about getting revenge on New England.