INDIANAPOLIS — Broncos fans thought the San Diego Chargers were a cocky crew a few weeks ago.
Wait until you hear this one.
“They (the New England Patriots) are more worried than we are,” Chargers defensive end Igor Olshansky said after his team shocked the defending Super Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts 28-24 on Sunday. “They know what’s up.”
And away we go.
Others have tried to talk their way past the perfect Patriots this season with punishing results. But these are super-mouthy Chargers. They not only talk — see their Christmas Eve treatment of the Broncos — they win. Then they talk some more.
And you know what? They have earned the right to mouth off, having won eight consecutive games after a 5-5 start and a berth in the AFC championship game against the Patriots (17-0).
The Chargers (13-5) no longer are just the NFL’s cockiest team. They are the gutsiest as well.
In a second-round playoff game in which they were nearly double-digit underdogs, the Chargers had everything going against them. And that was before the game.
San Diego knew the second-seeded Colts would be sky-high playing their last game at the RCA Dome before moving across the street to Lucas Oil Stadium, which opens in August. The Colts also had motivation that this could be the last home game for beloved coach Tony Dungy, who might leave coaching for the ministry. And the Colts have superstar quarterback Peyton Manning.
Tough duty. Then the game started.
Injuries hit the Chargers hard. In the second quarter, league rushing champion LaDainian Tomlinson was sidelined by a bruised knee and never returned. Philip Rivers was dealing with knee and hand issues nearly all game and had to leave for good after throwing a 56-yard touchdown pass to reserve running back Darren Sproles, which gave San Diego a 21-17 lead on the final play of the third quarter. Tight end Antonio Gates played despite a sprained toe, but wasn’t a factor.
“Good thing we have such good backups,” said Tomlinson’s understudy, Michael Turner. “(San Diego general manager A.J. Smith) looks like a genius right now.”
After Manning and Anthony Gonzalez connected on a 55-yard touchdown pass to give the Colts a 24-21 lead with 10:07 remaining, San Diego’s supercharged backups took over. Billy Volek and Turner took to the field with Rivers in the locker room and Tomlinson riding a stationary bike. Not a perfect scenario for a comeback.
“I still knew we could do it,” Gates said.
Volek completed 3-of-4 passes for 48 yards and Turner ran four times for 14 yards on an eight-play, 78-yard drive that culminated with Volek scoring on a 1-yard keeper to give the Chargers a 28-24 lead with 4:50 to play.
San Diego’s defense did the rest, keeping the Colts (13-4) from scoring after they drove to the Chargers’ 7-yard line with 2:16 left. Manning, who threw for 402 yards and three touchdowns, got the ball back with 1:30 remaining but closed with three incompletions after a 5-yard gain to the Colts’ 37.
The Chargers advanced the hard way. And they messed up the much anticipated matchup of Manning against Patriots star Tom Brady, the league’s most valuable player.
Olshansky reveled in the opportunity to scuttle that meeting.
“Everybody wanted that,” Olshansky said. “I felt it. It seemed like we were playing more than 11 players out there. Everybody wanted that game. . . . But we’re going there.”
Yes, the Chargers are. In typical form, too: loud and clear.
Bill Williamson: 303-954-1262 or bwilliamson@denverpost.com
