SAN DIEGO -- Eric Weddle did his best impersonation of "Grumpy Old Men" when talking to reporters this week.

The usually cheery Weddle playfully scowled at reporters when asked to talk about the San Diego Chargers' struggles during this two-game losing streak, and the importance of getting a win at Miami on Sunday.

"We have to do everything in our power to get to 6-3," Weddle said. "We have to get a win by any means necessary, because that’s much better than going into a bye at 5-4. Losing is contagious, and you don’t want to be accepting losing. Losing is nothing that’s a part of me. I hate it. I despise it, and I don’t want to be anything remotely near it."

While Sunday’s game is not a must-win situation, at 5-3 San Diego players understand that winning against an AFC conference opponent in the Dolphins (4-3) on the road heading into the bye week will help their chances of making the postseason, particularly as the team’s schedule toughens down the stretch of 2014.

Even Chargers head coach Mike McCoy slightly modified his take-one-game-at-a-time approach this week.

"Everybody understands what’s at stake," McCoy said. "This is a big game. Every game is big. We’ve hit that halfway point, and we know the importance of every week. Regardless of what time you’re kicking off, we’re going to go out and play. We have to have a great week of preparation against a very good football team, and we’ve got to play our best game."

Quarterback Philip Rivers said his team has to get back to playing with the type of swagger that carried the Chargers to a five-game winning streak this season.

"We’ve got to make sure that we don’t play with a lack of confidence or a lack of anything," Rivers said. "We’re a good team. And we’ve lost two games to two good teams."