Chargers Stay Wary in Rematch with Colts : Football: Chargers try to extend three-game winning streak. They defeated Indianapolis two weeks ago.

Until now, the Chargers have been confronted by games they could win--if all went well.

Today they play a game they should win.

The Chargers have won three in a row, including a 34-14 victory over the Colts (4-3) two weeks ago in Indianapolis.

Nothing has changed much in two weeks. The Colts upset the Dolphins last week, but they still have quarterback Jeff George, who is prone to make errors when nearing the end zone. They still don’t have a running game, and three of their starting offensive linemen are injured.

They received solid notices on defense before playing the Chargers, but then the Chargers’ offense compiled 34 points. The Colts also lost outstanding rookie linebacker Quentin Coryatt last week in Miami, and they list defensive end Jon Hand as questionable with both knee and ankle injuries. Rookie defensive lineman Steve Emtman spent a night in the hospital this week because of an infected elbow.

The Chargers, 6 1/2-point favorites, have added incentive. A victory lifts their record to 4-4 and into a tie with the Chiefs, whom they play next week in Kansas City.

By sundown next Sunday, the Chargers could be tied for first place with Denver.

“We’re 3-4; that’s not too pretty,” Coach Bobby Ross said. “Part of my job is to keep us focused. I reminded this football team that what got us here is that we’re blue collar. We were working hard, we were concentrating and we can’t get away from that.

“In the course of a season you’re not going to hit a mental peak for every football game; when that’s going happen, I don’t know. I would have thought it might have been in Indianapolis because in our pregame warm-ups a couple of guys said, ‘God, I hope we play better than we warmed up.’ You just never know.”

The Chargers were coming off the bye week when they played the Colts and played crisply on offense. Running back Rod Bernstine slashed his way to 150 yards and two touchdowns before suffering a serious shoulder injury.

The Chargers’ defense, meanwhile, had its way with George. They sacked George four times, forced him from the game briefly, and then sacked his replacement, Jack Trudeau. Defensive back Darren Carrington intercepted a pair of passes in the end zone, and the Chargers’ defensive front limited the Colts’ rushing attack to 2.2 yards a carry.

The Chargers should win, right?

“Nothing is a lock,” said Charger starting right tackle Broderick Thompson. “People didn’t think we were going to beat New Orleans last year. Things happen.

“It was 17-14 in the fourth quarter two weeks ago and we got some breaks and took advantage of them. It could be reversed this week. We’re coming into the game thinking we can win, but nothing is for certain.”

The Colts scored late in the third quarter and trailed 17-14, but the Chargers responded with an 80-yard drive and a two-yard Eric Bieniemy touchdown. The Chargers’ defense forced a pair of turnovers later in the fourth quarter, and the Chargers took advantage to score a touchdown and field goal for their most lopsided win since 1990.

“We were very fortunate,” Ross said. “(Tight end) Derrick Walker made a huge play to start the fourth quarter, and it was third and 11, and if Walker doesn’t make that play, who knows what happens?”

Walker hauled in a 14-yard reception from quarterback Stan Humphries, and on the play Emtman was hit with a penalty for roughing Humphries. The Chargers moved from the Colts’ 48 to the Colts’ 19-yard line on the play, thanks to Walker’s catch and the added penalty, and three plays later they scored.

“That gave us a little momentum and took it away from them,” Ross said. “That was the big turning point in the game.”

The Colts, like the Chargers, have the easiest schedule in the NFL this season. However, the Colts were matched against the unbeaten Dolphins in Miami last week, and they won.

“That tells you something,” Charger cornerback Gill Byrd said. “This is going to be a good ball game.

“They are going to be mad. They’re saying to themselves, ‘How could we have lost to San Diego at home?’ They probably felt they took us too lightly, and they’ll come in here fired up with the revenge factor. It’s the same attitude we had when we played Denver last week.”

The Colts rank 16th in the league in stopping the run. While ineffective in their efforts to stop Bernstine, who went on injured reserve, they now get a shot at Marion Butts.

“They didn’t do a lot to stop our running game in the last game,” guard David Richards said. “They didn’t bring the free safety up, they didn’t change their coverage in the secondary and that’s why Rod was so free when he got through the line.

“If we got three tight ends in the game, it’s pretty tough to keep us from getting yardage. I would expect them to try something different, but then we’re doing different things on offense now. It’s tough now to bring eight guys up because we’ve become more successful in the passing game.”

The Chargers’ defense, meanwhile, which is ranked second in the AFC, is expected to have a healthy Junior Seau and Leslie O’Neal in the lineup.

“We’re just 3-4, and while we’ve done it in a way that seems good by winning the last three, the fact still remains we’re 3-4,” Byrd said. “We dug ourselves a deep hole going 0-4 and there’s no room to be overconfident. If guys think we have already arrived, they are in for a rude awakening. We just have to keep winning, and not be looking any further down the road than that.”