Darren Sproles may not get the notoriety of other backs in the NFL, but he doesn’t seem too concerned about that. Sproles rushed for 105 yards on the evening, while scoring the game-winning touchdown (22-yard run) some six minutes into overtime, as the San Diego Chargers scored a 23-17 win over the Indianapolis Colts last Saturday evening in the AFC Wild Card Playoff at Qualcomm Stadium. The win sends San Diego (8-8) off to Pittsburgh for this Sunday’s AFC Divisional Playoff at 1:30 p.m. PST. Pittsburgh defeated San Diego 11-10 earlier this season at Heinz Field. The odd score was the first 11-10 end result in the history of the NFL. After trailing 17-14 late in the game, and with the Colts only a first down away from likely running out the clock, the Chargers made their move. San Diego’s Tim Dobbins sacked QB Peyton Manning back to the Colts 1 yard line for an eight-yard loss on third down to set up a fourth down punt, which Sproles returned into Indianapolis territory. San Diego QB Philip Rivers moved the Chargers down into scoring territory, where Nate Kaeding delivered a 26-yard field goal to tie it at 17-17 with under a minute left. Manning and the Colts were unable to move the ball in the final seconds, setting up Sproles for his heroics. After winning the coin toss, the Chargers were the beneficiaries of some defensive foul calls against the Colts, giving San Diego several first downs, and allowing the home team to move farther into Indianapolis territory. Sproles, who along with kickoff and punt returns saw more time on this evening as a result of a groin injury to running back LaDainian Tomlinson, then capped off the comeback. The former Kansas State star emerged from the pack and raced 22 yards into the end zone, sending Indianapolis home again courtesy of the Chargers for the second straight January. While Sproles got the most notable play of the night, it was also the efforts of punter Mike Scifres that kept San Diego, a 23-20 loser to Indianapolis (12-4) in the regular season, in the game. Scifres landed six punts inside the 20-yard line on the evening, including a 67-yard boomer, to force Manning and Co. to go long on drives. One drive where the Colts went long was when San Diego’s defense appeared to fall asleep. With nearly eight minutes remaining in the third quarter, Manning caught the Chargers in a defensive switch, leaving defensive back Antonio Cromartie in the dust. Manning hit wide receiver Reggie Wayne for a 72-yard strike, giving the Colts their final lead of the night at 17-14. San Diego’s defense, however, bottled up the Colts for the most part the remainder of the night to set up the thrilling Sproles heroics. “When I got the hand off, I saw the end slant in,” Sproles said. “Once I saw the end slant in, I saw the green grass outside and I just went for the score.” The score set off a wave of celebrations at the Q, and sends San Diego off to another battle with the Steelers. As for Manning (25-of-42 for 310 yards, 1 TD) and the Colts, it was the second straight disappointing January, meaning Indianapolis would watch the remainder of the playoffs from the sidelines. “The Chargers made the plays when it counted. Give them credit,” Manning commented. The question now is can the Chargers do it two weeks in a row?
