It’s Chargers Who Just Win

The night air was chilly Sunday at Qualcomm Stadium, but the Oakland Raiders, well, they were downright frozen.

The rivalry between the Raiders and the San Diego Chargers, known for hard-fought contests on the field and the stands, produced one of its rare laughers as the Chargers beat the Raiders, 34-10.

The Raiders dropped to 4-8 as the Chargers rose to 8-4 and stayed in the hunt for a playoff spot, with Denver’s loss to Kansas City moving San Diego within one game of the AFC West lead. The Cincinnati Bengals’ victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers also put the Chargers in position for a wild-card berth.

In front of a raucous crowd of 66,436 and amid temperatures that fell to a Southern California brutal of 51 degrees, the Chargers scored three touchdowns (two passing and one rushing) and two field goals on offense. Safety Clinton Hart returned an interception 70 yards for the Chargers’ final score.

Raider Coach Norv Turner said it was simply a case of experience triumphing over youth.

“We’re playing a lot of young guys back there, and they’re playing a lot of snaps and it’s taking its toll on them,” he said.

The second half was one frustration after another for the Raiders.

Take punter Shane Lechler. In the third quarter, he lofted a wobbly kick that stretched only 28 yards, putting the Chargers in position, 10 plays later, for a 32-yard field goal by Nick Kaeding.

And in the fourth quarter, a bad snap gave Lechler no option but to run for a first down, and his life. He saved the latter but failed to get the former.

LaDainian Tomlinson gained 86 yards in 25 carries, and his backup, Michael Turner, 34 yards in seven, with a touchdown. Quarterback Drew Brees was 17 for 22 for 160 yards and touchdown passes to Antonio Gates and Eric Parker.

Charger Coach Marty Schottenheimer said he was pleased with the overall performance but annoyed that his personal goal of a penalty-free game was thwarted by a 15-yard unnecessary roughness call against center Nick Hardwick. “We’ll get that worked out,” Schottenheimer said.

As always when the Raiders and their fans come to town, several dozen extra police were in attendance and beer sales were cut short.