Winning is Chargers’ Chief Concern

They win, and people will have to take notice.

They win, and they become the Cinderella darlings of the NFL this season and merit national media attention.

They win, and they are in position to advance to the playoffs for the first time since 1982.

But can the Chargers win in Kansas City, claim sole possession of second place in the AFC West and establish themselves as something more than simply a team with an easy schedule?

“These are the kind of games you have to win if you are going to be a good team,” Charger General Manager Bobby Beathard said. “You have to give the players and coaches a lot of credit for digging out of that (0-4) hole to start the season. There has been progress.

“What I see is a different team. They have been able to overcome some things, where before that was not the trademark of this team. . . . If you’re going to beat a good team, you have to be able to overcome mistakes. And this is a heck of a team we’re playing.”

The Chargers (4-4) are chasing their fifth victory in a row; the Chiefs (4-4) come off a bye week after falling in three of their last four.

“We’re probably catching them at a bad time,” Beathard said. “They’ve lost two in a row and Marty Schottenheimer’s teams haven’t lost more than two in a row in the past. It will be a tough task.”

Hyped in some quarters as the biggest game for the Chargers in a decade, it more closely resembles a conflict between these teams two years ago here.

At that time the Chargers were 5-5 after winning three in a row, the Chiefs were 5-4, and both teams were right behind the AFC West Division leading Raiders, who were 6-3.

On the third play of the game, however, quarterback Steve DeBerg went 90 yards to wide receiver J.J. Birden for a 7-0 lead. Quarterback Billy Joe Tolliver fumbled the snap on the Chargers’ first offensive play, the Chiefs recovered and moments later Kansas City had a 10-0 lead on the way to winning, 27-10.

The defeat wiped out the Chargers, who went on to lose four of their final five games to finish 6-10. The Chiefs won five of their final six games and advanced to the playoffs.

“If we win, this game will be quite large for us,” said Charger tackle Harry Swayne. “It will be immense, colossal, huge; it will be an extreme zenith.

“After watching us win four in a row, I’m sure they’re thinking they will have to be more explicit in their execution, but I still don’t believe Kansas City respects the San Diego Chargers. Until we beat them, they won’t respect us.”

The Chiefs have defeated the Chargers five times in a row, including a 24-10 victory in San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium to open the 1992 season.

“We’ve hurt ourselves with penalties and missed assignments in the past; that’s not the case this year,” said Charger kicker John Carney. “I think we’re a much sharper team and more disciplined.”

The Chargers rank No. 2 in defense in the NFL and No. 10 in offense. They are No. 1 in defense against the run, and that has been the Chiefs’ strength on offense.

The Chiefs feature running backs Barry Word, Christian Okoye and Harvey Williams. Word has been sidetracked with an ankle injury, and Okoye, who has averaged 5.2 yards a carry in seven meetings with the Chargers, is expected to start.

The Chargers’ defense has not allowed an opponent’s running back to gain 100 or more yards in the past 20 games. It’s the longest such streak in the NFL. In the season opener the Chiefs averaged 2.2 yards a carry against the Chargers’ defense.

“We have played teams that have been passing the past four weeks,” said Charger defensive coordinator Bill Arnsparger. “I’m concerned about making the adjustment to play a against a team that likes to run the ball like Kansas City.”

Coach Bobby Ross believes the Chiefs will try to strike hard in the early going to shake the Chargers’ confidence and inspire their own fans to make more noise. He had had his team practice with loudspeakers blaring the sound of chanting fans in Arrowhead Stadium.

“I look for them offensively to play a very loose game,” Ross said. “They are very capable of being a football team that just pounds you. But it’s a gut instinct on my part, I think they’ll try and get us early and get us behind.”

Chiefs’ quarterback Dave Krieg, who is 12-3 as a starter against the Chargers, has completed 54.6% of his passes this season with six touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Running back Todd McNair is the team’s leading receiver with 27 catches, but ends Willie Davis and Birden give Kansas City the opportunity to break off the big play. Davis leads all receivers in the league with an average of 21.2 yards a catch.

The Chargers outscored opponents 101-41 in the past month. After throwing one touchdown pass and being intercepted eight times in the first four games, quarterback Stan Humphries has thrown six touchdown passes with four interceptions.

Wide receiver Anthony Miller has topped the 100-yard mark in three of the past four games. Ten of his last 12 catches have earned the team a first down.

“We’re going to have to continue to pass the ball and play it loose,” Ross said. “Stan is playing well, and it seems like Anthony makes a big play every game.”

Kansas City’s defense, which ranks right behind the Chargers in the AFC, has helped the Chiefs gain the top ranking in the category of takeaways/giveaways. The Chiefs are a plus-nine; the Chargers are a minus-one.

The Chiefs have switched to a four-man defensive alignment recently to improve their ability to stop the run. While Kansas City ranks No. 2 overall in defense in the AFC, it stands seventh against the run.

Derrick Thomas, who is considered the Chiefs’ premier defender, has moved from a pass-rushing defensive end position to outside linebacker. At the same time, former Charger nose tackle Joe Phillips has been added to the starting lineup at defensive tackle.

Defensive end Neil Smith leads the team with 8 1/2 sacks, and Thomas has 6 1/2.

“This is a huge game for us, but the confidence level really has escalated in this locker room,” Charger linebacker Gary Plummer said. “That makes a tremendous difference on the field. Because of the parity in this league in terms of the quality of players, sometimes the only difference in a game is the confidence level of the players.

“The Chiefs are in a situation where they feel it’s a must-win for them and that makes for a playoff atmosphere. This should be one of the best games to watch in the NFL this week.”

If the Chargers win and the Broncos lose today, the two teams will be tied for first place in the AFC West Division. The last time the Chargers sat atop the AFC West standings was in 1987, when they opened the year 8-1. The last time they won the division title was in 1981.

“I think it’s a very important football game for us,” Ross said. “It’s not the end of the world, but it gives us a chance to take ourselves to another level. It’s a chance to go out and beat a heck of a football team on the road before a hostile crowd in game that has a lot of significance.

“In that light, it’s important. If we don’t win, it doesn’t mean we go down the tubes. If we win, it just means we get there a little faster, and certainly you want that.”