Chargers Drop Broncos Into Last Place : AFC: San Diego, limiting Denver’s offense to 211 yards, gets its third victory in a row.

The San Diego Chargers, a team on the upswing, defeated the Denver Broncos, a team on the downswing, 19-7, Sunday.

The Chargers have now won three consecutive games and four out of five. The Chargers hadn’t won three in a row since the strike year of 1987.

Excluding the strike season, not since 1985 have the Chargers been .500 this late in the season. Go back to 1982, and that’s the last time the Chargers were in the playoffs.

But things are turning upside down in the AFC West. The Broncos (3-6) are left for playoff dead, while the Chargers (5-5) are in third place, behind the Raiders (6-3) and Chiefs (5-4), who both lost Sunday.

The Broncos, who were in the Super Bowl last season, are now in last place.

“They might be playing as well as anyone right now,” Denver Coach Dan Reeves said.

The Chargers went after Sunday’s win in playoff fashion. They combined a potent running game with a defiant defense and stymied Denver’s attempts to rally.

Running back Marion Butts, who entered the game as the NFL’s leading rusher, wasn’t supposed to play. He had a deep thigh bruise and the club considered keeping him out of uniform.

The Chargers kept Rod Bernstine (hamstring) in civilian clothes, and started Ronnie Harmon. Harmon ran 10 times for 71 yards, and then came Butts.

He ran 16 times for 114 yards, including a 45-yard run that set up a field goal that left the Broncos stunned.

“Sitting out the first quarter made me hungry,” Butts said.

The Chargers’ defense, meanwhile, was cracking down on the Broncos. They limited the Broncos to 211 yards in total offense, sacked John Elway three times, and intercepted two of his passes.

“That’s a good football team,” said Elway, who was coming off a toe injury and also had a strained arch.

“The toe’s numb, but it’s the knife here,” he said, while pointing to the middle of his chest, “that needs to come out.”

The Chargers used four field goals from John Carney to build a 12-7 lead with 3:11 to play in the third quarter, but then Denver put them to the test.

On the ensuing kickoff following Carney’s fourth field goal, Kevin Clark ran 75 yards to the Chargers’ 25-yard line. It was the longest return in Denver history since 1972, and it put the Broncos in position to push ahead.

But the Chargers’ defense refused to budge, and on third and seven Elway surrendered to Burt Grossman’s relentless pass rush. As Grossman leaped into the air, Elway tried to force a pass to wide receiver Michael Young in the end zone.

Cornerback Gill Byrd, however, was there for the interception. It was Byrd’s second of the day, and for the team’s all-time leader in interceptions with 32, his seventh of the season.

“It was a stupid play on my part,” Elway said.

Byrd’s interception gave the Chargers possession at their own 20, and they went on an 80-yard march and scored on linebacker Gary Plummer’s one-yard dive. Plummer, who lines up as blocking back in goal-line situations, has now scored twice for the Chargers this season.

Carney’s extra point gave the Chargers a 19-7 advantage, but the Broncos were not finished.

After getting the ball on their own 12, they moved to the Chargers’ one-yard line with a first and goal.

But on first down, Bobby Humphrey was tackled for a two-yard loss, and on second down, tight end Chris Verhulst bobbled a pass from Elway as he went out of the end zone, thereby negating atouchdown. On third down, defensive tackle Lee Williams sacked Elway for a nine-yard loss, and on fourth and goal from the 11, safety Vencie Glenn knocked down Elway’s pass in the end zone.