SAN DIEGO -- The Chargers' franchise-best 14-2 season has prompted season ticket purchases to reach unprecedented heights.

The team has already sold 6,900 new season-ticket packages for next season, chief operating officer Jim Steeg said Wednesday. Steeg said the team now has nearly 63,000 season ticket-holders, pending renewals.

The Chargers don't plan to put a limit on season-ticket packages, so it's a very real possibility that the Chargers could sell out the 2007 season before it starts.

"We're going to try to do that," Steeg said. "We haven't been close to that before. We'll see what the renewals are."

Steeg said last season was the first time the Chargers sold all 113 suites in Qualcomm Stadium. He said that is expected to occur again this season.

The team's soaring popularity can also be assessed in another manner. According to Steeg, the Chargers ranked 28th in the NFL in merchandise sales two years ago. Steeg said they now ranked fifth.

Contract talk

The six-year deal linebacker Shaun Phillips signed earlier this week not only gave Phillips the security he coveted, but also includes $13 million of guaranteed dollars over the first 13 months of the deal.

The Chargers have 24 players under contract through at least 2009, but defensive end Igor Olshansky isn't one of them even though he signed a six-year deal in 2004. Agent Ryan Tollner said Olshansky reached playing-time incentives that voided the final year of the deal.

Olshansky's contract now expires in 2008.