CHARGER REVIEW : NOTEBOOK : Humphries Shows No Effects of Having Knee Drained at Half

Quarterback Stan Humphries left the Charger locker room Sunday afternoon limping on a sore knee.

Humphries had been late arriving onto the field after halftime, and had no opportunity to warm up before resuming play. His knee had swollen in the first half, and during halftime the medical staff drained fluid from his knee.

“He wanted to play, so I said, ‘Let’s go,’ ” Charger Coach Bobby Ross said.

Humphries came on in the third quarter and threw a pair of touchdown passes to Nate Lewis in the Chargers’ 26-0 win over Indianapolis.

“I hurt the knee, the bursa sac, is what they tell me,” Humphries said. “I hurt it last week, but in the first half today it blew up. They stuck a needle in and took a bunch of fluid out.”

Humphries said he never considered not playing in the second half, and although he was having trouble walking after the game, he said he will be ready for Sunday’s game with Kansas City.

Starting left guard Eric Moten was on the sideline in sweats at game’s end after suffering a knee injury. Ross said Moten will be examined again today, and will be questionable for the Chiefs game.

Running back Eric Bieniemy left the game with a sprained ankle.

The Chargers took a 2-0 lead after defensive end Burt Grossman sacked Colts quarterback Jeff George in the end zone.

“I would have been big if we would have won, 2-0,” Grossman said.

Grossman had gone six games without a sack, and he said he had become frustrated.

“Before the game we have our prayer and it was the first time I ever prayed for a sack,” Grossman said. “That’s how bad it was getting; I felt like Gill Byrd. Somebody must have been listening. I usually pray not to get hurt and both teams have a safe trip home. You know, that usual bull. But I was getting desperate.”

Grossman had two sacks Sunday.

Bill Arnsparger, 65, is a little older than most NFL coaches. He had been out of the league for nine years before he came to coach the Chargers defense. When asked if he felt reborn here, he appeared almost shocked.

“I never knew I died,” Arnsparger said with a chuckle.

Arnsparger’s defense is alive and well. It held Indianapolis to 99 total yards, the second lowest mark in team history, but Arnsparger didn’t feel much like talking about statistics.

“I really don’t think about those things,” Arnsparger said. “There are two things that were important. It was a win and we were able to contribute to it.”

Indianapolis Coach Ted Marchibroda gave Arnsparger some of the credit

“Bill’s the best defensive coordinator in the league,” he said. “A lot of people don’t know what a great defensive coordinator the Chargers have.”

When the Colts decided they could no longer beat the the Chargers, they took to fighting them. As Darren Carrington ran down the sidelines in the closing minutes after making a fumble recovery on a ball that had been blown dead, Indianapolis tackle Mark Vander Poel and Tony Blaylock squared off.

“As Darren was running out of bounds, (Vander Poel) got in my face mask,” Blaylock said. “I told the guy, ‘Hey we don’t need nothing like that.’ Then he took a swing at me. I looked for the ref to throw a flag and he didn’t throw a flag so I started exchanging some blows with the guy.

“I think he was a little bit frustrated. I looked up and I think the entire team was over there. At least I know that I’ve got the guys’ support.”

It had only been three games since safety Stanley Richard intercepted a pass. But Richard attacked a ball tipped by safety Delton Hall like he was going for his first and last interception.

“It’s about time,” Richard said. “I’ve been telling the guys all week that I was past due. It was my time to come in and get a pick. When the ball was up, instead of waiting for it, I went up to get it. I was hungry for it.”

Richard, who got his first interception against Seattle, is in a four-way tie with Carrington, Donald Frank and Blaylock for second place on the Chargers’ interception list.

“Every time I catch up with them they run away from me,” Richard said.