New England’s Heath Evans is tackled by San Diego’s Shawne Merriman in last January’s AFC Championship Game. Don’t expect to see the same glamour when the teams play each other again tonight.

The Providence Journal / Bob Breidenbach

SAN DIEGO — Don’t know about you, but I’m not exactly “pumped and jacked” — as former Patriots coach Pete Carroll liked to say — about tonight’s prime-time matchup between two teams that can’t beat the Dolphins.

Wasn’t this supposed to be a glamour game? Or, even better, a grudge game?

It is, after all, a rematch of last year’s AFC Championship Game, won by the Pats, in Foxboro, 21-12. That was a rematch of the 2006 conference semifinal game, in San Diego. The Patriots won that one, too, 24-21, coming from behind in the fourth quarter.

Although they play on different coasts, the Pats and Chargers play almost as often as division rivals. This will be their fifth meeting in four years, with the Patriots having won the last three, including a 38-14 rout last September at Gillette Stadium.

This year, it’s become an intrastate rivalry, right up there with Chargers-Raiders. The Pats, having stayed in California following their 30-21 victory over the 49ers in San Francisco last Sunday, now can be referred to, much like the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, as the New England Patriots of San Jose, where they’ve spent the last week practicing.

So it’s SoCal versus NoCal, and is supposed to be something special.

Instead, having tickets to this game is like going to a Broadway play and finding out that the star has come down with laryngitis. It’s like driving the scenic Pacific Coast Highway in the fog, or ordering the special at your favorite restaurant, only to find out the kitchen just served the final portion.

The Chargers are struggling, and frustrated, and feeling a bit snakebitten. They lost their opener at home to Carolina when the Panthers threw a touchdown pass on the final play of the game. They lost in Week Two at Denver because of a premature whistle that nullified a fumble recovery in the shadow of the goal posts. The Broncos, given a reprieve, went on to score a touchdown. After beating the Jets and Raiders, San Diego lost last week at Miami, 17-10, and fell to 2-3.

Star linebacker Shawne Merriman is out for the season following knee surgery, and running back LaDainian Tomlinson, the best in the business, is playing at less than his best because of a sore toe.

Not that the Chargers will get any sympathy from the Patriots, who lost NFL MVP Tom Brady in the first half of the first game.

Still, the Pats are 3-1 with Matt Cassel at QB, although their wins have come over the Chiefs (1-4), Jets (2-2), and 49ers (2-3), and they lost at home to the Dolphins, who had dropped 20 of their previous 21 before springing a stunning upset in Foxboro three weeks ago.

Last week’s foe, the 49ers, have beaten only the Seahawks and Lions — two teams with one win between them. Yet, after last Sunday’s game with the Pats in crumbling Candlestick Park — the place looked as if it had never been repaired after the last earthquake — San Francisco coach Mike Nolan said: “That’s a team we can beat at home. That’s a disappointment.”

What’s that say about the Patriots?

You think Nolan would have said that last season?

A year ago, the Niners would have been thrilled to come within two touchdowns of the Patriots and their record-setting offense. Now, Nolan’s saying that, since his Niners can beat the Lions and Seahawks, they ought to be able to beat the Patriots, too.

And why not? The Dolphins did.

Miami also beat the Chargers, which says a lot for the job Tony Sparano is doing but doesn’t speak particularly well for San Diego. Or New England, for that matter.

Pats coach Bill Belichick, as you’d expect, has had nothing but nice things to say about the Chargers.

“They look pretty explosive, like they always do,” he said.

The San Diego pass defense, however, has been a dud, allowing a league-high 10 touchdown passes.

Which is good news for Cassel.

San Diego coach Norv Turner sees improvement in Brady’s former backup with each game.

“Matt looks like he’s getting a real feel for what they’re asking him to do,” Turner said. “Early, they were being very careful. Last week, they opened it up a little more. You can tell he’s getting more comfortable, and that they’re getting more comfortable with him.”

The Chargers are in the uncomfortable position of having to win tonight.

“It’s a must-win game for us,” Tomlinson said. “We need a win desperately. We can’t afford to drop this one.”

But that doesn’t mean the Chargers are good enough to win.

“Obviously, we’ve been up and down,” Turner said. “We’ve had good moments, and we’ve had some times when we’ve struggled. When we’ve played well on offense, we’ve struggled on defense. When we’ve played good defense, we’ve struggled on offense.”

Struggles aside, the Chargers are favored by the oddsmakers, which is yet another indication that the Patriots may not be as good as their 3-1 record might indicate.

Both coaches insist this is a big game.

“Any time you play as many times as we have,” Turner said, “it’s like a divisional opponent. You get to know each other real well and they become bigger games.” “It’s a big game,” Belichick said. “We know we have our work cut out for us.”

That hype might work for you. But I’m not pumped. Or jacked.

jdonalds@projo.com