Props to the Chargers

Hip hip hooray for the Patriots and all that. I'm glad they won.

But the San Diego Chargers deserve a Wig-Wag salute for the game they played in frosty Foxboro. They were outstanding, and I was feeling mighty nervous through the first three quarters, because they sure seemed capable of pulling off a Major Upset. The Pats took control into the 4th, and the game wound down without any drama -- but, still, I gotta say of the Chargers, nice game well played.

Philip Rivers' anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee is “totally gone” and he will have reconstructive surgery soon.
The recovery time for the surgery is not known but Rivers said he definitely will be 100 percent by the start of next season.

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Rivers played the entirety of the Chargers' 21-12 loss to the New England Patriots with a right knee with no ACL. He revealed Monday he had arthroscopic surgery last Monday to clean out loose cartilage and enable him to play.

“If I don't do that Monday, I had no chance of playing,” Rivers said. The San Diego Union-Tribune first reported Friday that Rivers had injured his ACL, but the extent of the injury was not known until today.

“The ACL is gone,” Rivers said.

more -

http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/chargers/20080121-1239-bn21chargers.html

If the Chargers hadn't been so banged up, they might have pulled an upset.

...even when they beat Indy in the regular season, it seemed more like Indy lost, than SD won. however, a week ago, they proved it wasn't a fluke and held tough against the Pats.

I can't believe there are no threads here. Or elsewhere. That was the height of masochistic ignorance. I was shouting when he did it, imagining how Schottenheimer would be roasted.

It was strategic idiocy. Down by 9 and only 4th and 10. Basically 9:30 remaining. Play that scenario against an offense like NE's a thousand times and I guarantee you win at least twice as often by going for it on 4th down instead of punting. My buddies who are more statistically focused on stats in that realm insist I'm far too low, that it's more like 3 times more likely.

Regardless, it was alltime ignorance and the mainstream media should be raked for not ripping Turner incessantly. Classic case of understanding opponent and situation and making the necessary adjustments from typical tunnelvision strategy. Punting to NE is hardly equivalent to SD coming from 14 down to Tennessee late in the season.

Turner flunked bigtime.