Vikings Beat Chargers on Kramer’s TD Aerial in Final Minute, 21-17

The Chargers had more comebacks than an aging Hollywood starlet on Sunday.

But they had nothing on the Minnesota Vikings and Coach Bud Grant, who had some observers wondering, after a season spent blasting ducks out of the prairie sky, if he had lost his touch.

Not to worry. After being second-guessed each of the last two weeks on last-minute strategy, Grant had his quarterback, Tommy Kramer, take a shot at the Charger secondary, which hadn’t allowed a completion to a wide receiver Sunday afternoon. With 19 seconds left, Kramer lobbed a 26-yard touchdown pass to Leo Lewis to give the Vikings a 21-17 win.

For the first time in a year, all the elements in Air Coryell had been reunited--quarterback Dan Fouts, tight end Kellen Winslow, and wide receiver Wes Chandler. And, with the aid of a significant newcomer named Tim Spencer, the Chargers put together a dramatic fourth-quarter rally that gave San Diego a 17-14 lead with 6:13 left.

With all that time, the Vikings (4-3) managed a comeback of their own to get the critics off the back of Grant.

Lewis, Winslow’s college roommate in Tiger Towers at the University of Missouri, out-finessed defensive back Danny Walters, who had inside position and was attempting to make an interception rather than knock the ball down.

“I ran a fade pattern, outside and down,” Lewis said. “Walters had single coverage on me. I’m not sure if we both hit the ball at the same time or if it hit his pads, but it popped up and right in my hands. He made a good play, I just got the right bounce.”

The Lewis play diluted, but couldn’t totally dissipate, the joy the Chargers felt in having their offense whole again, just in time for four straight games against the Raiders and Denver Broncos.

“We’ve got more offensive talent right now than I’ve ever seen on a football field,” said Fouts, who considers the Chargers contenders for a playoff spot.

“The next month is very important for us. We’ve got a chance to do it ourselves. We couldn’t ask for more.”

Fouts, after missing nearly a month with a knee injury, entered the game in the fourth quarter and promptly delivered a 45-yard touchdown pass to Chandler, who was back in the lineup after missing a week with a deep cut in his ankle.

The TD to Chandler was nullified by a penalty, so Fouts, taking his time, pieced together an 11-play scoring drive. After patiently waiting for the crowd to dull its roar enough for the count to be heard, Fouts pitched back to Spencer, who swept into the end zone behind a Winslow’s block, which took out two Vikings. It put the Chargers ahead by three with a little more than six minutes left.

Winslow, who had been out for a year with a knee injury suffered against the Raiders, had led Spencer into the end zone to give the Chargers a 7-0 lead on their first series.

In between those two touchdown drives, however, the Chargers (3-4) were sloppy enough to keep the Vikings in contention. Dropped passes and painful penalties had nearly as much to do with the Chargers losing as Lewis’ catch.

Still, the disappointment of losing couldn’t keep the Chargers from looking ahead with relish.

Spencer, who had spent three years in the USFL, found out what a real tight end can do as he strategically positioned himself behind Winslow on two scoring runs.

“He did a great job blocking for me,” Spencer said. “People had better watch out, he’s one heckuva athlete.”

Spencer, who rushed for a season-high 86 yards on 14 carries, seemed impressed by the company around him.

“I was just trying to take advantage of the chance to play some,” he said. “We have so much talent here, you better be ready when they give you a chance.”

Winslow received his first chance to play since a collision with Raider linebacker Jeff Barnes and reconstructive surgery on his right knee. He was activated Friday, in part because owner Alex Spanos seemed to be getting impatient, and also because the Chargers wanted him to play a little before taking the field against the Raiders next Monday night.

Winslow, catching two passes for 14 yards, also broke out of a self-imposed silence.

“It was great to come back at the same time as Dan and Wes,” Winslow said. “Actually, I didn’t have the great anticipation of this day as you might think; it felt like I had never been away.

“It was like old times when we all went out there in the fourth quarter. That was rather dramatic. I looked around the huddle and heard someone say, ‘We’re all back.”’

Winslow, in typical fashion, couldn’t stop talking once he finally started.

“I look around and I see all kinds of young talent here,” he said. “Our secondary has more speed than it’s ever had, and we’ve got real strikers back there. It’s coming along and it’s going to jell. If that last pass bounced our way, we’d have won this game.”

The Chargers have had ample experience in making excuses for their secondary, but none was required or offered Sunday.

Both Walters and defensive backfield coach Jim Wagstaff said the Vikings scored in spite of nearly-perfect positioning by the San Diego secondary.

“I played it the best I could,” Walters said. “I was trying to catch it, but he poked it and stayed with it and caught it. If I had been trying to knock it down, they might have got another play or two. That was the first catch by a wide receiver, and I just hate it had to be a touchdown.”

Wagstaff, who was upset by an earlier pass interference call against Walters that led to a Viking touchdown, said he had no qualms with the final play by Walters.

“He had perfect coverage,” Wagstaff said. “He played it as well as he could. It was just a fluke damn thing. I’m not at all discouraged. We’re coming on and we’re going to win some games this year.”

It appeared they might win Sunday. With starting quarterback Mark Herrmann looking poised and throwing with a soft touch, the Chargers drove 67 yards to a 7-0 lead on their first series of the game.

But problems quickly surfaced. The Chargers intercepted two passes in the first quarter, but one of them was nullified by a personal foul against Linden King.

Penalties continued to burn the Chargers in the second quarter. Two pass interference calls contributed heavily as the Vikings tied the score at 7.

Gill Byrd and Walters were each called for interference, handing Minnesota 43 yards, more than half of an 80-yard drive.

The Chargers also were plagued by dropped passes by Charlie Joiner, Chandler and Eric Sievers.

Although sloppy and inconsistent for much of the half, the Chargers mustered a two-minute offense and managed to take a 10-7 lead on a 43-yard Bob Thomas field goal.

Herrmann was shaken up late in the half and wasn’t himself thereafter.

“I got nauseated at the half and I wasn’t thinking clearly in the third quarter,” Herrmann said. “We were sluggish until Dan came in and got something going.”

After a scoreless third period, the Vikings seized a 14-10 lead on the first play of the final quarter on a 51-yard pass from Kramer to Mike Mularkey.

On the next series, Fouts entered the game for the first time since he was hurt against Cleveland.

He completed his first pass to Lionel James, then went to Winslow for a seven-yard gain. It was Winslow’s first reception since his injury.

However, Fouts’ next throw was intercepted by Rufus Bess, and the Chargers were stymied.

The San Diego defense helped matters as King redeemed his earlier miscues by intercepting a Kramer pass, giving the Chargers possession at the Viking 48.

A 45-yard touchdown throw to Chandler was nullified by a holding call against Jim Lachey.

But, the presence of Fouts, Winslow and Chandler, plus some persistence, resulted in the 17-14 lead.

The Vikings, however, still had six minutes left, and they used most of it in driving 76 yards for the winning score.

The Chargers hurt themselves again when defensive end Keith Ferguson was offside on a third and four at the 29 with 1:06 to go.

After a short run, the Vikings let the clock run before Kramer drilled a 26-yard scoring pass to Lewis with 19 seconds to go.

And just like that, Bud Grant was a genius again.