• Disappointed L.T. vents on Bolts issues.
• Tomlinson will not be a Bolt in 2010.
• “Lights Out” wants to stay in San Diego.
• AFC wins Pro Bowl, WR Jackson shines.
• LB Joey Porter wants to play for Bolts.
• Rivers family welcome new baby.
• L.T. appreciation thread.
• Three Chargers named to All-Decade team.
• Who is Boltman?
• Chargers NFL videos on Hulu.
• Philip Rivers football camp information.
• www.sdstadium.org

Show your support of the show this month by voting for us on Podcast Alley! Subscribe to the show and leave us review on iTunes. Digg our podcast on Digg.com.

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BoltTalk Podcast Logo by Chris Hudson

LaDainian Tomlinson

SAN DIEGO (AP)—LaDainian Tomlinson says he believes he has played his last game as a San Diego Charger.

The running back told The San Diego Union-Tribune on Thursday that he has thought for a while he would be let go by the Chargers.

His comments come after more than a month of saying he did not know what would happen.

The NFL’s most valuable player in 2006 has two years remaining on his contract. He is due a $2 million roster bonus March 5 and would be paid $5 million in total salary in 2010.

Tomlinson tells the newspaper he doesn’t know when the Chargers will release him and that his agent, Tom Condon, might call the club to expedite the process.

Condon didn’t immediately respond to a phone message from the AP.

A team spokesman, Scott Yoffe, declined to comment.

Tomlinson has become one of the most beloved athletes in San Diego history during a nine-year career but his production and speed have been decreasing.

Tomlinson had 730 yards on 223 carries for an average of 3.3 yards per carry this past season, all career lows. The lower numbers were due in part to the Chargers relying more on their high-octane passing game, as well as L.T. missing the second and third games with a sprained ankle.

• Bolts lose in Divisional round to Jet 17-14.
• Chargers players stunned after loss.
• Tomlinson unsure if he’ll remain a Charger.
• Norv Turner rewarded a 3 year extension.
• Players vow to regroup for next season.
• Jackson pulled over before the game.
• Chargers free agent list.
• Rivers to skip pro bowl.
• Which players need to go?
• www.sdstadium.org

Show your support of the show this month by voting for us on Podcast Alley! Subscribe to the show and leave us review on iTunes. Digg our podcast on Digg.com.

Visit our forums at http://forums.bolttalk.com
Download audio file (BoltTalk-20100121.mp3)
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BoltTalk Podcast Logo by Chris Hudson

Norv Turner and Philip Rivers - Chargers.com Photo

The Chargers are gone and coach Norv Turner is coming back.

Just like a squad that felt confident about reaching the Super Bowl — or at least winning a home playoff game — is history.

Turner, who has lost two of his last three playoff games directing the Chargers, will be retained through the 2013 season.

But the buzz around San Diego remains the Chargers’ shocking car-wreck of a loss to the underdog New York Jets.

As much as the team wants to be proud of its fourth straight AFC West title and an 11-game winning streak when compiling a 13-3 record, there is that heartbreaking loss.

“The thing about playing football and the thing that makes it tough when you do lose is it sticks with you a little longer, and we won 11 in a row and that’s hard to do,” quarterback Philip Rivers said. “Nobody in our locker room is excited or thrilled about that because the 12th one we didn’t win because of the way we came to play.

“It’ll be a long offseason and we’ll gear up to go at it again.”

But once again, the Chargers lost a playoff game — that’s four of their past six — to miss a showdown with the Indianapolis Colts for the AFC title.

If the Chargers are to ever win a Super Bowl, it won’t come this season in Miami.

“We all want to go to the Super Bowl and we want to go win a Super Bowl,” said Turner, who has a 3-3 playoff record with the Chargers. “That’s what’s going to determine it as a success. From a standpoint of the ultimate goal, I’m disappointed like everyone else is.”

Still, Turner points out the season was stellar, if not spectacular.

“From a standpoint of what this group accomplished … I’m not going to do it but I could stand here and name 10 or 12 guys that had their best year ever,” he said. “I could name 20 guys that weren’t expected to play that contributed to what we’re doing and allowed us to win 11 straight games and go 7-1 on the road and do all those things. For those guys, growing as football players, that’s a success.

“If you continue to grow, then the ultimate success of going and winning a Super Bowl, that’s what we want to do and that’s how I think we’ll determine our success.”

But the Chargers know they let a golden opportunity slip away as the AFC’s No. 2 seed in their 50th anniversary season. Sloppy play and an undisciplined play got the Chargers’ vacation started much too early.

“It’s just a big letdown,” linebacker Stephen Cooper said. “After the game I was real disappointed but after sleeping on it and waking up, the Jets were a real good team and you have to give them credit. When it’s playoff time, you’ve got to step up and show up to work and we didn’t do that.”

It’s a playoff pattern the Chargers just can’t shake, even with everything all lined up.

“It’s going to hurt for a while because the opportunity was there for us to go win a Super Bowl,” Cooper said. “We had the guys intact, we had the coaching staff intact and we’re just disappointed to sit home and watch somebody else play for a Super Bowl when we thought it was going to be ours.”

So the Chargers will regroup, but the healing will take some time.

Off the field, the contracts of linebacker Shawne Merriman, left tackle Marcus McNeill, wide receiver Vincent Jackson are among those coming up. All of them can’t come back — some wonder how long it will take the team after the last playoff face-plant.

“It’s devastating knowing guys, myself included, to me I had the best year so far in my career and guys just stepping into the zone — Vincent Jackson, Philip Rivers, I can go on and on and name guys … our offensive line with Marcus McNeil and Kris Dielman,” tight end Antonio Gates said.

“But those are all individual accomplishments which we talked about earlier in the season. You set individual accomplishments and you set goals for a team. The team goal was to win a Super Bowl, but we just quite couldn’t get that done this year.”

NOTES, QUOTES

—QB Philip Rivers, who fell to 3-4 as a starter in the playoffs, admits the recent pratfall is tough to swallow.

“It’s tough; I hate losing as much as anybody,” he said. “I know we all feel this loss and hurt in this locker room and in this building. As an organization and as I know the fans do. It doesn’t get better over night. In fact it’ll probably get worse these next two weeks until nobody’s playing and you can feel better, but we’ll gear back up and be back at it.”

—RB LaDainian Tomlinson likely won’t be back with the Chargers but the future Hall of Famer still wants to play.

“I feel like I’ve got a lot of football left,” he said, after setting career lows in rushing yardage, rushing average and carries. “Physically I feel like I can hold up to the pounding still. Obviously I know I had the least carries in my career, but other than the ankle injury early in the year I was pretty healthy all year long.”

—ILB Stephen Cooper, while disappointed with the early playoff exit, thinks the Chargers will remain contenders for a Super Bowl.

“We’ve still got 17 (Rivers) at quarterback,” he said. “We’ve still got a lot of guys coming back. We know a lot of contracts are up and some guys are going to be restricted (free agents) but I expect we’ll have a lot of the same faces back here next year and we’re going to keep pushing for the Super Bowl. That’s our goal and that’s my goal as an individual, to try to get that ring, because when you put on this uniform, at the end of the day you want to win a Super Bowl. It doesn’t matter about the money, it doesn’t matter about the individual accolades, it’s about going out there and winning a football game, and that’s the Super Bowl.”

—TE Antonio Gates said the Chargers’ dreadful playoff showing was like a dream — or is a nightmare?

“Personally, I just think we went out and we just didn’t play our best game,” Gates said. “It happens. That’s the nature of the business. You just are not immune to absolutely nothing as a human being. When you watch the film, you look at several things that are happening in the game and you just can’t believe they were actually happening. I remember there was a point in the game where it felt like it was a dream with some of the penalties we were committing. It felt like that in the New England game and the Jets game in ‘06 … it felt like it was happening to you kind of like a deja vu feeling. It was just unfortunate that we weren’t able to take care of our business and move forward.”

—OLB Shawne Merriman — depending on the labor situation — may have played his last game as a Charger. There have been no signs the team will seek his return. Merriman said he’s not sure what the future will bring after he recorded four sacks this season, a year after missing most of a season because of a knee injury.

“I really don’t know,” he said. “Nothing has really been set in stone just yet. Like I said before, I love our fans and I love my teammates. I love being here, but it’s not up to me. I’m more disappointed about the way that our season has ended that I haven’t really paid too much thought about it.”

—Coach Norv Turner explains just how close the Chargers were to doing something special.

“The disappointing thing, we were one of eight and there are going to be six teams that are very disappointed and aren’t in the Super Bowl. When you get into that point where you’re one of eight, you know that you’re two games away from it. That’s a disappointing thing for me.”

QUOTE TO NOTE: “That’s our intention and that’s our goal. I believe this team is capable of coming back and putting ourselves in position to make a run at it over the next period of time.” — Coach Norv Turner on the team someday winning a Super Bowl.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

The Chargers coaches dominated the news in the wake of the playoff meltdown.

Head coach Norv Turner was given a three-year extension about 24 hours after the team was eliminated and a year before his original contract was to expire.

Rob Chudzinski, the team’s tight ends and assistant head coach, is expected to draw interest from the Chicago Bears.

Defensive coordinator Ron Rivera was thought to get a sniff from Buffalo for its head coaching position, but the Chargers said the Bills never asked permission to speak with Rivera.

UNIT-BY-UNIT ANALYSIS

QUARTERBACKS: Starter — Philip Rivers. Backups — Billy Volek, Charlie Whitehurst.

Rivers was sensational as he continues to prove he is among the NFL’s top players at his position — he finished third in the MVP voting. Rivers eclipsed 4,000 yards passing for the second straight season and threw for 28 touchdowns against only nine interceptions. Volek proved he’s still got it when he directed the backups to a last-minute win over the Redskins.

RUNNING BACKS: Starters — RB LaDainian Tomlinson, FB Jacob Hester. Backups — RB Darren Sproles, RB Michael Bennett, FB Mike Tolbert.

Tough sledding here as the Chargers were consistently ranked at the bottom in rushing categories. Tomlinson was a shadow of the great back he once was — he’s lost a step plus the run-blocking was shoddy. Sproles was a speedy change-of-pace and made the most of his noise as a receiver coming out of the backfield. The fullbacks were so-so; Bennett seldom played.

TIGHT ENDS: Starter — Antonio Gates. Backups — Brandon Manumaleuna, Kris Wilson.

Gates had a career year and that is saying something considering the string of success he’s had. He was healthy this year and it was evident.

WIDE RECEIVERS: Starters — Vincent Jackson, Malcom Floyd. Backups — Legedu Naanee, Buster Davis. Injured reserved — Demetrius Byrd.

Jackson produced his second-straight 1,000-yard season and added nine touchdowns as Rivers’ favorite target downfield. Floyd and Naanee stepped up after Chris Chambers was released, Floyd more so than the versatile Naanee. Davis looked good in the one game he play, but he might have to battle for a roster spot next summer.

OFFENSIVE LINE: Starters — LT Marcus McNeill, LG Kris Dielman, C Nick Hardwick, RG Louis Vasquez, RT Brandyn Dombrowski. Backups — T Jon Runyan, C Dennis Norman, LG C/G Tyronne Green, C Eric Ghiacuic. Injured reserve — T Jeromey Clary, C Scott Mruczkowski.

The pass-blocking was keen here as Rivers was able to execute a pass-happy offense while staying out of harm’s way. The question is can this unit run-block better? Hardwick missed the majority of the season with a foot injury; Clary went down late in the year. McNeill played at a Pro Bowl level; Vasquez, a rookie held his own. Don’t overlook the job Mruczkowski did filling in for Hardwick — impressive. Dielman earned another Pro Bowl selection.

DEFENSIVE LINE: Starters — LDE Jacques Cesaire, DT Ian Scott, RDE Luis Castillo. Backups — DE Alfonso Boone, Travis Johnson, DT Vaughn Martin, Antonio Garay. Injured reserve — DT Jamal Williams, DT Ogemdi Nwagbuo, DE Ryon Bingham.

Injuries here wrecked the line, none being bigger than Williams going down in the opener to IR. Cesaire and Castillo were OK; as it ended up they would have to carry a patch-work line consisting mostly of free agents and rookies. Leaning on the injury card is weak, but the reality is the line was decimated and the results were a unit which was easy to run on.

LINEBACKERS: Starters — OLB Shaun Phillips, WILB Stephen Cooper, SILB Brandon Siler, OLB Shawne Merriman. Backups — OLB Larry English, ILB Tim Dobbins, ILB Kevin Burnett, OLB Dontarrious Thomas. Injured reserve — OLB Antwan Applewhite, LB James Holt, OLB Jyles Tucker.

Phillips had a solid season, leading the NFL with a franchise-best seven forced fumbles; he paced the Charger with seven sacks as well. Merriman seldom showed the burst and moves which got him selected to three Pro Bowls in his return from serious knee surgery. The inside play was challenged to stop the run with the easy passage runners had getting through the first line of defense. Cooper led the team with tackles; team was encouraged with the improved play from Siler, who wrestled a starting job away from Burnett.

DEFENSIVE BACKS: Starters — LCB Quentin Jammer, RCB Antonio Cromartie, SS Eric Weddle, FS Kevin Ellison. Backups — CB Antoine Cason, CB Dante Hughes, SS Steve Gregory, FS Paul Oliver, FS C.J. Spillman. Injured reserve — CB Brandon Hughes.

Jammer might have had his best season as his sure-tackling and strong mental game — he’s seldom out of place — helped the defensive backend. Cromartie proved time and again he isn’t interested in contact, and while displaying decent coverage skills, his lack of physical play could be his downfall sooner rather than later. Ellison showed well as a rookie and Weddle, while smart, is often held back by his size. Cason’s stock fell during the season after losing his nickel position.

SPECIAL TEAMS: PK Nate Kaeding, P Mike Scifres, KR/PR Darren Sproles.

Kaeding will long be remembered for missing three field-goal attempts — one from 57 yards — in the loss to the Jets. Before that, he had a Pro Bowl season and became the NFL’s most accurate kicker, percentage-wise. Scifres continues to be the best punter not making the Pro Bowl. Sproles gave the high-powered offense attractive field position time and again.

By Bernie Wilson

Norv Turner

SAN DIEGO (AP)—Like it or not, Chargers fans, coach Norv Turner will be sticking around for four more years.

The Chargers announced Monday night that the oft-maligned coach is getting a three-year contract extension through 2013.

The extension came just more than 24 hours after the Chargers were shocked 17-14 by the New York Jets in the divisional playoffs, renewing calls by some fans for Turner to be fired.

The team had been expected to extend Turner’s contract in the offseason so he wouldn’t be a lame duck next fall. That offseason came a lot sooner than most people expected. Some had picked the Chargers to win the Super Bowl, but they melted down in a hail of mistakes and penalties against the Jets.

Team president Dean Spanos told The Associated Press on Monday night that he spoke with Turner for about 45 minutes earlier in the day and got a deal done.

“I think he’s done an outstanding job and I look forward to the next four years,” Spanos said.

Neither Turner nor general manager A.J. Smith returned calls seeking comment. The team did not plan a news conference, spokesman Bill Johnston said.

Turner seemed to be on his way to erasing the stigma of never being able to get to the big game as a head coach. Although he won two Super Bowl rings as Dallas’ offensive coordinator in the early 1990s, his first two head coaching stints, with Washington and Oakland, were forgettable.

Most fans groaned when he was hired to replace the fired Marty Schottenheimer after the 2006 season. He joined the Chargers with a 58-82-1 record overall as an NFL head coach. While Schottenheimer couldn’t win in the postseason, Turner couldn’t get to the postseason.

That changed in San Diego, although he still hasn’t been able to get the talent-laden Bolts to the Super Bowl.

The Chargers have won three straight AFC West titles under Turner, although they are only 3-3 in the playoffs. They reached the AFC title game in his first season before losing at New England. The Bolts have been eliminated in the divisional round the last two seasons.

Turner’s regular-season record with San Diego is 32-16, but his overall record is still sub-.500, at 90-98-1.

Turner was credited as being the steadying force as the Chargers rallied from a 2-3 start to win their final 11 games to clinch the AFC’s No. 2 playoff seed and a first-round bye.

But anti-Turner sentiment re-emerged after Sunday’s shocking loss, in which the Chargers looked tight, played conservatively and at times lost their composure. The Chargers were booed at one point, and some fans began calling for Turner to be replaced.

The Chargers have had slow starts in Turner’s three seasons, only to end each season with a winning streak.

By Bernie Wilson

San Diego Chargers tight end Brandon Manumaleuna, center, and teammates sit on the bench during the fourth quarter against the New York Jets.

The San Diego Chargers still don’t have much of an explanation for their latest playoff pratfall, although the word “uncharacteristic” popped up plenty as players headed into a gloomy off-season.

The Chargers, believed by some to be Super Bowl favourites, took a face-plant in Sunday’s 17-14 loss to the New York Jets.

And to think, they don’t have Marty Schottenheimer to blame for this one.

“No question it was a missed opportunity,” said LaDainian Tomlinson, who might have played his last game with the Chargers. “I’ve said all along and I still believe it, this is the best team I’ve ever been on since I’ve been here with the Chargers. It’s disappointing.”

The Chargers certainly didn’t play like the team that won 11 straight games coming in. There was plenty of poor play spread around:

— Pro Bowler Philip Rivers had two interceptions, one that set up rookie Mark Sanchez’s go-ahead TD throw for the Jets.

— All-Pro Nate Kaeding, who in six seasons has become the NFL’s most accurate kicker of all time, missed three field goals.

— The Bolts had 10 penalties for 87 yards, including three personal fouls. Wide receiver Vincent Jackson was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct for kicking the challenge flag that Jets coach Rex Ryan had just thrown late in the game with the Chargers trailing 17-7. Linebacker Shaun Phillips and special teams player Kris Wilson were called for unnecessary roughness.

“It was some of the most uncharacteristic things you could possibly do, and bad timing, too,” outside linebacker Shawne Merriman said. “We just had bad timing all the way around. Some missed field goals, offside penalties, personal fouls, things that we’re not accustomed do doing, and it happened. In certain situations, I guess we have to learn to keep our composure. That’s when the maturity and experience has to kick in at some point.”

This was supposed to be a more mature bunch put together by general manager A.J. Smith.

Instead, it drew comparisons to the Chargers team that melted down in a slew of boneheaded plays in a home divisional loss to New England three years ago.

Do the Chargers still have a maturity problem?

“It’s tough to say because you’ve got guys who haven’t had a penalty like that for the entire year and it happens one time, in a bad situation, and that’s a deciding factor,” Merriman said. “If it was a thing that a guy had personal fouls all through the year, or offside penalties, whatever it is, and it happened in this game, you can kind of say, ’OK, well, he has a pattern of doing it.’ But when guys get personal fouls and do some things uncharacteristic, you can’t really call it maturity problem, It’s more of a composure problem that we need to get better.”

Coach Norv Turner also used the word “uncharacteristic” about the penalties, saying he couldn’t explain them.

“It’s disappointing to me,” Turner added. “I don’t care who you are, those things are tough to overcome.”

That loss to the Patriots three years ago came after the Chargers went 14-2 and earned home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Schottenheimer was fired a month later, in large part because of his icy relationship with Smith.

Once again, a Schottenheimer ended Smith’s playoff run. This time it was Brian Schottenheimer, the Jets’ offensive co-ordinator who used to the be the Chargers’ quarterbacks coach.

These Chargers went 13-3 and had the first one-and-done playoff performance in three seasons under Turner, who dropped to 3-3 in the post-season with the Bolts.

Turner got the Chargers to the AFC championship game in his first season. They beat Indianapolis in overtime in a home wild-card game last year before being manhandled in the divisional round by eventual Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh.

Turner isn’t expected to suffer the same fate as Marty Schottenheimer. Turner said he expects to return next season, the final year of his contract, and there’s been speculation he’ll receive an extension this off-season.

Turner doesn’t think the Chargers’ window of opportunity has been slammed shut.

“We have got an outstanding football team and we have got good players and great character players and people that you want to be around on a daily basis, and guys that will get this thing done,” Turner said. “There’s no question in my mind. I think the future for this football team is outstanding.”

Asked if that means winning the Super Bowl, he said: “That’s our intention and that’s our goal. I believe this team is capable of coming back and putting ourselves in position to make a run at it over the next period of time.”

If they do, it’ll likely be without Tomlinson and perhaps Merriman.

Tomlinson almost became a salary-cap casualty last off-season, and there’s been plenty of speculation that the Chargers will let him go this off-season.

“We all had aspirations of winning the championship. It’s disappointing when it comes to a halt,” he said.

Nate Kaeding reactings after missing one of this three missed field goals.

SAN DIEGO — Rex Ryan is on a roll.

The rookie coach who declared his team Super Bowl favorites after he figured out they were still in the playoffs, is just a game away from being hailed for his psychic powers.

His Jets are still playing.

Rookies Mark Sanchez and Shonn Greene led New York to a stunning 17-14 upset of San Diego in the divisional playoffs Sunday, each providing a touchdown in the fourth quarter that marked another Chargers postseason pratfall.

The jovial, rotund Ryan isn’t afraid to say what’s on his mind, and his players are taking his lead as they head into the AFC Championship Game against Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.

“A matchup that probably nobody wanted, but too bad,” Ryan said. “Here we come!”

He means: “Here we come again.”

It was the Colts who pulled Manning and other starters in the second half of their Week 16 game against the Jets, who rallied for a victory that put them in control of their playoff destiny.

Before that game, Ryan said his holiday wish was for the Colts to rest Manning & Co.

“I don’t know if Santa Claus will be that good to me again,” Ryan said. “But I will say that I’d like to see Peyton Manning not play this week.”

After the Jets finally did clinch a playoff spot by routing Cincinnati the following week, Ryan created a postseason itinerary for his players that included the Super Bowl in Miami followed by a parade two days later.

He might be onto something.

Maybe this week he’ll predict the Jets’ opponent in the Super Bowl.

“We believed the whole time, the whole year, when it probably wasn’t the popular choice,” Ryan said. “We don’t have to apologize to anyone.”

The upstart Jets (11-7), who have won seven of their last eight, advanced to the AFC Championship Game for the first time since 1999.

“It’s a big win for our franchise, and we’re not done,” Sanchez said.

“Don’t pay attention to the words he says,” linebacker Bart Scott said about his coach. “Pay attention to the content. We’re not the same old Jets, and we’re trying to change what people think of us.”

As glum Chargers fans headed out into the equally gloomy evening, several thousand New York fans thronged in the stands behind New York’s bench and chanted, “J-E-T-S, JETS, JETS, JETS!”

One held a sign that read: “I don’t have another 41 years,” a reference to the Jets’ only Super Bowl title, the one that Joe Namath predicted.

They hope another one is lurking.

Sanchez threw a go-ahead, 2-yard touchdown pass to tight end Dustin Keller three plays into the fourth quarter, then Greene gave the Jets some breathing room with a 53-yard scoring run on their next possession.

The mistake-prone Chargers let New York hang around long enough, and the Jets finally got out of their own way, becoming the only road team to win in the divisional round.

After Philip Rivers scored on a 1-yard sneak with 2:14 left to pull the Chargers within three, the Jets recovered the onside kick.

Facing a fourth-and-1 from the 29 with 1:09 left, the Jets called timeout. Ryan decided to go for it and Thomas Jones bulled through the Chargers’ line for 2 yards.

“That symbolizes what this team is all about,” guard Alan Faneca said. “The hard nose. We’re coming at you. We’re that kind of team.”

Sanchez pumped his fist and pointed his hand forward in the first-down signal.

On the sideline, Ryan lifted much smaller offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer off the ground in a bear hug.

Schottenheimer’s father, Marty, presided over two playoff losses with the Chargers, one against the Jets after the 2004 season and one against New England after the 2006 season in which top-seeded San Diego imploded in a flood of errors.

This one was just as big a nightmare. Many people had San Diego picked to win its first Super Bowl title.

“We didn’t, obviously, play our best game and it’s disappointing,” said coach Norv Turner, who was trying to guide the No. 2-seeded Bolts to their second AFC title game in three seasons.

The Chargers (13-4) saw their 11-game winning streak end.

“It was the best defense I’ve played this year,” said LaDainian Tomlinson, who after nine seasons might have played his final game with the Chargers. “Run, pass, and they are really prepared. Hats off to them.”

Sanchez, playing in his native Southern California, went from looking like the rookie that he is to a guy who has now has two straight playoff wins on the road.

He was intercepted by Quentin Jammer midway through the third quarter, but the Jets got the ball back on an interception when the ball ricocheted off Vincent Jackson and into the hands of cornerback Darrelle Revis as both were sprawled on the ground.

The Jets weren’t able to capitalize on that pickoff, but Rivers’ second interception was costly. On second-and-9 from his 5, Rivers underthrew Antonio Gates, who hadn’t even turned around, with safety Jim Leonhard intercepting and returning it to the 16.

On third down, Sanchez rolled right and threw to Keller, who shed linebacker Tim Dobbins in the back corner of the end zone and made a sprawling 2-yard catch that put the Jets ahead 10-7.

Sanchez and the rest of the Jets ran over to congratulate Keller, then the rookie QB kept running to the bench, stopping once to celebrate with a teammate.

The Jets turned to their top-ranked running game on their next drive, and Greene, a third-round pick from Iowa, broke his long scoring run up the middle, running over safety Eric Weddle in the process.

“Once I got to the secondary, I had one tackle to break and I did, and it was off to the end zone,” said Greene, who had 128 yards on 23 carries. “A lot of people didn’t know about me, but they know about the Jets.”

Greene rushed for 135 yards and a TD in last week’s playoff win against Cincinnati.

San Diego’s All-Pro kicker Nate Kaeding missed three field goals. He was wide left from 36 yards on San Diego’s second possession and was short from 57 yards as the first-half clock expired. With the Chargers trailing by 10 with 4:38 to go, he was wide right from 40.

Ryan pumped his fist and smiled after Kaeding’s third miss.

The last time these teams met in the playoffs, after the 2004 season, the rookie Kaeding was wide right from 40 yards on a wet field in overtime. The Jets moved down the field and won it 20-17 on Doug Brien’s 28-yard field goal.

Five years later, the Jets left Qualcomm Stadium winners again.

“We’re not supposed to be here,” Faneca said. “All week, people were basically thanking us for providing the game, and we went out and took it.”

Game notes
New York had four straight three-and-outs, failing to pick up a first down until its fifth drive, midway through the second quarter. … Rivers threw a 13-yard TD pass to third-string tight end Kris Wilson in the second quarter. … Jets DE Shaun Ellis left in the first quarter with a hand injury, but returned.

By Bernie Wilson

LaDainian Tomlinson

SAN DIEGO (AP)—In typical Southern California fashion, the San Diego Chargers have been chillin’ since the end of the regular season.

They’ve rested, rehabbed, practiced and largely kept their mouths shut about their chances of finally winning the Super Bowl. The NFL’s hottest team and AFC’s No. 2 seed, the Chargers (13-3) will try to win their 12th straight game when they host the New York Jets (10-7) in the divisional round on Sunday.

It’s the first stop along the road that they hope ends with their first NFL title. It’s just that they’re not openly talking about being a Super Bowl favorite, something they’ve done in the past, only to fall short.

“You have a team in the Jets that is very physical and wants to come in and kick our (rear),” Chargers outside linebacker Shawne Merriman said. “Here we’ve got a team in this locker room that is very focused, humble about winning, not saying much, that’s eager to get on the field and play on Sunday. It’s going to be a battle.”

The upstart Jets, on the other hand, aren’t shy about proclaiming themselves as Super Bowl favorites, starting with their rookie head coach, Rex Ryan.

Ryan even created a postseason itinerary for his players that included the Super Bowl in Miami followed by a parade two days later.

He’s not sure of the exact route, “but I sure hope we find out,” said Ryan, who has presided over six wins in the last seven games.

It’s a bold proclamation, considering that a few weeks ago, Ryan thought the Jets were out of the playoff picture.

“I think the vision that we have for our football team is we only have one goal, and that’s to win a Super Bowl,” Ryan said. “Anything less than that is going to be a disappointment for us. That’s just how we go into it. It’s not a slight on who we play or anything else, it’s a belief that we have that this is why we’re here.”

Ryan said he had “a great deal of respect” for the Chargers, whom he considers an elite team.

“But that doesn’t mean that I’m coming in there not expecting to win, because we are,” Ryan said.

Although the Chargers are favored by a touchdown, it’s an intriguing matchup. The Chargers have a high-voltage offense that’s difficult to stop and sometimes can score at will, with Pro Bowler Philip Rivers throwing to Pro Bowl tight end Antonio Gates and 6-foot-5 receivers Vincent Jackson and Malcom Floyd. Rivers also has a healthy LaDainian Tomlinson and the speedy Darren Sproles at his disposal.

The Jets have the NFL’s top-ranked defense and No. 1 running game, led by Thomas Jones and rookie Shonn Greene, who had 135 yards in the Jets’ playoff opener.

While the Chargers rested during their bye weekend, the wild-card Jets went to Cincinnati and beat the Bengals 24-14 in a game that gave rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez some confidence.

There’s talk that the Chargers need to shut down the Jets’ powerful running game and make Sanchez beat them.

“They’re a physical bunch of guys,” Merriman said. “They’ve been really good at certain areas and just good at certain areas. They’re a good team all the way around, but they do certain things extremely well, like running the ball.”

And Sanchez?

“He’s good,” Merriman said. “He can make plays and he’s going to come in here and look for there to be a big playoff run as a rookie. He’s definitely capable.”

Although it’s a road game for the Jets, it’s a homecoming of sorts for Sanchez. He grew up in Orange County and played at Southern California, so he’ll have lots of friends and family members cheering him on.

Efficient against the Bengals, he’s trying to join Baltimore’s Joe Flacco (2008), Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger (2004) and Tampa Bay’s Shaun King (1999) as the only rookie starting quarterbacks to reach the conference championship game since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970.

Sanchez hopes he’s gotten past the point of being considered the Jets’ weak link.

“I knew I had some tough games, that’s for sure,” he said. “I knew that I played well in spurts and that I needed to keep plugging away, keep preparing, not lose focus, not lose faith in myself and this team. To let things work for me instead of forcing.

In his last three games, Sanchez has completed 32 of 50 passes for 351 yards and one touchdown, with no interceptions.

Coming into that stretch, he had 20 interceptions.

“These last couple of weeks, I haven’t really forced anything,” Sanchez said. “I haven’t really tried to make something work out of nothing and that’s where we’ve gotten in trouble in the past. When I stay away from that, there is nothing to worry about. We just have to play and hope for big plays. We know our defense is going to play well.”

The marquee matchup is expected to be Jackson against Jets All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis. Jackson caught 79 passes for 1,157 yards and nine touchdowns.

Revis, who is 6 inches shorter, has become league’s premier cover cornerback. He had six interceptions during the regular season and intercepted Carson Palmer in last weekend’s win against Cincinnati. Revis also held Chad Ochocinco to two catches for 28 yards after shutting him down in the first half of the regular-season finale between the teams.

“When you’ve got a great player on the other side, they have an impact and can affect things you may want to do,” Rivers said. “But this game isn’t between Vincent and Revis. There are 10 other guys on both sides of the ball and a lot of things have to happen to go get the ball in the end zone and a lot of things for them to stop us. That will be certainly a matchup worth paying attention to. We’ll be focused on finding ways to get the ball into the end zone.”

Tomlinson is healthy after being slowed the last two postseasons by knee and groin injuries. With his future with the Chargers uncertain, this could be his final game at Qualcomm Stadium.

After the Chargers fired Marty Schottenheimer following the 2006 season, Ryan interviewed for the job that went to Norv Turner.

Now Turner has the Chargers one victory shy of reaching their second AFC championship game in three seasons.

By Bernie Wilson

Shawne Merriman

SAN DIEGO (AP)—The postseason lights are coming back on for Shawne Merriman.

The San Diego Chargers outside linebacker, nicknamed “Lights Out” for his hard hits, is eager for Sunday’s divisional game against the New York Jets.

Merriman missed almost all the 2008 season, as well as San Diego’s two playoff games, as he rehabbed from reconstructive left knee surgery.

“It was tough, man,” Merriman said Friday. “It was one of the hardest things I had to do. My team made it without me, but I knew that I could be a big contributor out there. I know what I’m capable of bringing to a defense and what I’m capable of doing. So it kind of hurt that some of the things that happened, I wasn’t able to go out and provide what I do best.”

Without Merriman last year, the Chargers beat the Indianapolis Colts in overtime, then were manhandled in a loss at Pittsburgh.

This year, the Bolts (13-3) earned the AFC’s No. 2 seed and a first-round bye. They go into their playoff opener with an 11-game winning streak.

Merriman was one of the Chargers who benefited most from the bye week. He had been bothered by plantar fasciitis and was held out of a win at Cleveland on Dec. 6 and also the regular-season finale on Jan. 3.

“I think the rest has been good,” defensive coordinator Ron Rivera said. “As you game-plan, there’s not that uncertainty as to whether or not he’ll be out there or how long he’s going to be there, so I’m pretty excited about his opportunity to be on the field.”

Merriman wasn’t as dominant this season as he rebounded from the knee surgery, then dealt with a groin injury and the plantar fasciitis. He finished with four sacks.

Still, he contributed to a Chargers defense that will face rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez and a Jets rushing attack that’s ranked No. 1 in the NFL.

“I did what I had to do for this defense to be successful,” Merriman said. “I was asked to do something that was different for me from what I’m accustomed to doing, and I did it—drop more into coverage, playing with my hand in the dirt. It’s not just line up on the edge and just come off the edge all the time. That was normally what my role was, just moving around, coming off the end. That’s not the case here anymore. So I was asked to do something different, and I did.”

It’s been an interesting year for Merriman.

He was arrested just before the season started after reality TV star Tila Tequila accused him of choking her and throwing her to the ground while she was trying to leave his home in suburban Poway. Merriman said he was trying to keep her from driving drunk.

The district attorney’s office declined to charge Merriman.

The arrest brought some unwanted attention in the week before the opener. General manager A.J. Smith reportedly isn’t thrilled with Merriman’s extracurricular activities. Merriman and Tequila have since sued each other.

There’s been speculation the Chargers will let Merriman leave when he’s eligible to become an unrestricted free agent.

Merriman said he’s been strong enough to deal with the distractions, going back to his four-game suspension in 2006 for testing positive for steroids.

“People can’t handle what I’ve had to deal with, and that comes from having great character. If you don’t have that, you won’t be able to survive,” he said.

Now he and the rest of the Chargers defense have to deal with the Jets, who have been fairly chatty this week. San Diego has tried to cool the talk about this being its best chance yet to get to and win the Super Bowl.

“Here we’ve got a team in this locker room that is very focused, humble about winning, not saying much, that’s eager to get on the field and play on Sunday,” Merriman said. “It’s going to be a battle.”