Chargers Allow One to Get Away : NFL: They squander an 11-point lead and a game, 20-14, to the 49ers, but Ross is still confident.
This season was billed as, “The Return of the Lightning Bolts,” but when the hometown fans caught their first glimpse of the Chargers on Friday night, they watched a rerun of games best forgotten.
The Chargers took a 14-3 halftime lead, remained in front 14-6 after three quarters and then walked off the field losers, 20-14, in an exhibition game against the San Francisco 49ers in front of 40,921 in San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium.
The Chargers, 1-2 in exhibition play, fired Coach Dan Henning because his team managed to post only a 6-22 record in games decided by seven or fewer points the past three seasons. Hello, Bobby Ross.
The 49ers, who have won nine consecutive exhibition games, including four this year, scored the go-ahead touchdown on rookie Amp Lee’s three-yard run with two minutes to play in the game.
The Chargers’ two-minute offense went nowhere in response, and the 49ers ran the final 1:24 off the clock.
Raise your hand if you have heard this before: “When we needed the big play . . . we broke down,” Ross said.
What makes this defeat different, of course, is that it does not count. Fact is, the Chargers took heart in their starters’ performance and their 14-3 advantage after taking on the 49ers’ regulars.
“We played a pretty good first half,” Ross said. “We did some very good things; we’re doing the things we wanted to do on both sides of the ball. We had no turnovers and good balance with the run to the pass. With the exception of a penalty or two, we were playing pretty good football.”
Quarterback Bob Gagliano, who was supposed to play himself out of a job and be supplanted by Stan Humphries, completed eight of 13 passes for 87 yards and ran 20 yards for the Chargers’ first touchdown.
Gagliano is 20 for 32 for 261 yards, with a touchdown throwing, a touchdown running and no interceptions.
“Next week Gagliano will start, I would think,” quarterbacks coach Jack Reilly said. “Right now, Bob is the starter as far as I see it, and Stan has to beat him out. Or somebody else.”
Gagliano guided the Chargers to the 49ers’ 20-yard line on the opening series of the game, and only failed to reach the end zone because wide receivers Nate Lewis and Anthony Miller took turns dropping passes.
John Carney came on for a 38-yard field-goal attempt and was wide right.
“It was just one of those nights,” said Carney, who would stumble because of a high snap and miss from 47 yards in the fourth quarter.
The 49ers opened the scoring with Mike Cofer’s 32-yard field goal in the first quarter, but Gagliano wrapped up a 10-play, 80-yard drive with a 20-yard touchdown scamper.
“The design of the play was to try and get Derrick (Walker) isolated,” Gagliano explained. “But it just kind of opened up, and I got a great block from Nate Lewis in the end zone. I was getting worried I might have to put a move on somebody, and that wouldn’t have been real pretty.”
The Chargers went to Humphries, who was acquired last week from Washington, in the second quarter, and he helped the team increase its lead to 14-3.
Humphries completed four of six passes for 45 yards on an 11-play drive. Ronnie Harmon ran the final nine yards for the touchdown.
“I felt a little rusty,” Humphries said after hitting five of 12 for 52 yards with an interception. “I need to work a little more with the receivers. Not playing in a year is more of a factor than playing on a new team.
“I thought we really played hard. The difference in a game like tonight is turning the whole season around. You get close games like that and got to win them.”
Before the reserves turned the victory over to the 49ers, the Chargers’ defense continued to impress.
The Chargers’ defense, which was ripped by Phoenix in a 35-14 exhibition opener, befuddled 49er starter Steve Young in the first half. Young, who was relieved by Steve Bono, completed nine of 14 for 96 yards.
“The first unit hasn’t given up a touchdown the last two weeks after the debacle in Phoenix,” Charger linebacker Gary Plummer said.
The 49ers were forced to punt twice in the second quarter, and the half ended with linebacker Junior Seau sacking Young for a loss of two yards.
The Chargers opened the third quarter with their starting defensive unit and forced the 49ers to punt. A Johnnie Jackson interception of a Humphries pass gave San Francisco the ball back almost immediately at the San Diego 22, but the Chargers’ second-team defense kept the 49ers out of the end zone.
Cofer’s 19-yard field goal pulled the 49ers closer at 14-6, and then in the fourth quarter they made their run for the victory.
Bono completed a 15-yard touchdown pass to a diving Mark Seay with 3:43 to play to make it 14-13.
The 49ers were out of timeouts, but the Chargers failed to gain a first down and run out the clock. On fourth and five from their 23, John Kidd’s punt traveled 18 yards.
“That’s atrocious,” said Chuck Priefer, the Chargers’ special teams coach.
Kidd, who hit punts of 51, 49 and 50 yards before shanking his 18-yarder, was understandably unhappy.
“It was like a game winning field-goal opportunity and I blew it,” Kidd said. “I was trying to hit the ball as far as I could. I haven’t hit a ball like that all year. I’ve had three terrible punts in my career. One two years ago against the Raiders, one in Buffalo and tonight.”
The 49ers took possession at their 41, and with assistance from safety Delton Hall--who was penalized 15 yards for unnecessary roughness--needed only four plays to score.
Quarterback Pat O’Hara’s attempt at a happy ending failed on a fourth-and-seven incomplete pass from the Chargers’ 16-yard line with 1:24 to play.
“I feel bad for the starters and second-team guys because they put points on the board and played a great game,” said O’Hara, who completed four of eight for 42 yards with an interception. “It just didn’t work out.”