Right before halftime at Arrowhead last night, the Chargers tied the game on a touchdown pass to Antonio Gates. After a rocky start, the Chargers managed to go to the locker room tied up at 10.
The Chargers then outscored the Chiefs in the second half 17 to 7, en route to their fifth victory of the season . Rivers fumbled a snap near the end of regulation nearly costing the bolts their third turnover on the day, however Norv Turner called a timeout before the snap. This moves the Chargers to 5-2, on top of the AFC west.
That would have been, and should have been the paragraphs to sum up the evening, except the refs intervened.
The Chargers are amongst the leagues most penalized teams, and that has to be adressed, but how?
Really, what did Gates do wrong on his touchdown catch? He was penalized for running an excellent route, making a nice grab and a touchdown.
The week prior against the Jets, Jammer played outstanding pass coverage, just to be flagged twice on the game winning drives.
The Chargers could very easily be sitting here 6-1. That 10 point swing at before half last night inevitably cost the Chargers the game.
Why was Norv Turner's timeout before the bad snap ignored near the end of regulation?
Why was the blatant defensive holding on Rivers second interception not called?
So here the bolts sit 4-3 thanks in part to the refs. All the " football experts" and analysts are crowning the Chiefs the Afc West Champs, and calling the Chargers chokers again!
However , the Chargers are the only team with a legitimate quarterback, and dont just downright embarrass the AFC West in the playoffs. Their (4-4) playoff record under Turner is respectable.
The Chiefs are viewed by other playoff contenders as a bye week, and get steamrolled at home. The Raiders and Broncos don't even know who their coach , quarterback or general manager will be three weeks down the road.
So guess what Bolts fans , the division is the Chargers again. Don't let a 4-3 record by the Chiefs fool you. After next week, their schedule gets considerably tougher.
The Steelers, Giants and Packers have won the Superbowl after 9-7 regular seasons, and to be quite honest, I think 9-7 will get the Chargers into the playoffs this year, so dont give up yet.
Rivers is back, and he finally found his groove. 369 yards, and some brilliant passes, were overshadowed by the three turnovers, and his Touchdown pass was overshadowed by a horrible call
I know, but he's back.