AFC Championship: Patriots 21, Chargers 12

Lotsa luck to what's left of the San Diego Chargers. Your opponent is the undefeated Patriots, you'll be playing with injuries to your three key offensive players, and gametime wind chill is an un-SoCal-like ten degrees...

Darren Sproles is out to the 25 with the opening kickoff. Philip Rivers will start with the bad right knee, which must have a glowing-neon target on it as far as worthless piece of shit Rodney Harrison is concerned. LaDainian Tomlinson up the middle for 3. 2nd down, highly uncreatively, exactly the same play for 2. 3rd-and-5, Rivers throws a poor short pass low for Sproles that never would have made the 1st anyway. I don't think Rivers pushed off AT ALL on that throw. It was funky, even for him. The Patriots run into punter Mike Scifres. It won't be enough for a first but gives San Diego a chance to rekick a poor punt. On the retry, fair catch by Wes Welker at the 27.

Patriots take over. Is it too early to say this is a must-stop for the Charger defense? Chargers rush five, and Tom Brady's pass for Kyle Brady is well incomplete. Chargers bring just 4 on 2nd down but hold Laurence Maroney to 2 up the middle. 3rd-and-8, Chargers bring 5 again, Brady gets bumped in the pocket and throws it away for the 123-out. Five-man rush paying nice dividends so far. Sproles muffs the punt out of bounds around the 25.

The Chargers have absorbed the Patriots' first punch.

Holy Christ, JEFF TRIPLETTE is refereeing a conference championship game? How far have officiating standards fallen for this to happen?

Sweet sideline throw from Rivers to Chris Chambers for 20 to open the next series, as we find out that LT is staying out of the game with his vaginal injury. 5 for Michael Turner gets San Diego to midfield. 2nd down, Rivers gets all day to throw, bypasses his checkdown and hits Chambers for 8. 1st down at the Patriot 43. Play action pass for Vincent Jackson broken up by Assante Samuel. Screen to LT, who wusses out for 1. 3rd-and-9. Worthless piece of shit blitzes on 3rd down, LT completely fails to block him and forces an incomplete pass for Legedu Naanee. I swear, Tomlinson is having one of the least clutch postseasons ever and is getting zero heat for it. Patriots fair catch the punt at the 10, I don't think it was Welker that time.

Marlon McCree flashes in and drops Maroney for -1 as we return to action. But the Chargers let Welker squirt through their zone for 12 and a first. Chargers are giving the vaunted Patriot offensive line a real battle, but NE will get a first down on Quentin Jammer's illegal contact penalty. Maroney shut down again for no gain outside left tackle. On 2nd-long, SD only rushes 3 and Brady hits Ben Watson for most of the yardage. 3rd-and-2. Blitz comes, and Brady bails like a little bitch and throws an awful pass for Welker. Brady had time to hang in there; that was a less-than-courageous play. 4th down. Sproles returns a poor punt 12 yards to the 39.

The St. Louis affiliate comes back late and nearly misses a brief tribute to Georgia Frontiere. Nice. Turner breaks a tackle to gain 10, then 3, and he has been 10X the player LT has this postseason. I believe the Patriots brought five there on 2nd down, forcing a Rivers throwaway. 3rd-and-7. BIG rush off the edges by both DEs forces Rivers up into classless Junior Seau for a sack. Give Adalius Thomas credit for the QB pressure. Punt bounces into the end zone.

Not sure anybody was expecting an all-out defensive battle here, but the Chargers are hanging tough.

Patriots at their 20, and JAMMER PICKS OFF BRADY. Chargers take over just outside the Patriot 40. Next play, Vince Wilfork grabs Turner's face mask to put the Chargers at the NE20. Wow. 1st down, nothing for Turner around left end. Rivers hits Chambers on the sideline to set up first-and-goal at the 9. Turner up the middle for 1. Rivers rushes a throw for Lorenzo Neal, who wasn't turned for it, for an incompletion. Pats rushed just 4 there. 3rd-goal, Pats rush only 3, Rivers hits Chambers high in the back of the end zone, but he's ruled out of bounds. He stepped across the end line before he caught the ball; why isn't that an illegal touch? That non-penalty might have mattered, as Nate Kaeding's chippie BARELY slips inside the right upright to put the Chargers ahead 3-0.

3-0 with 3:00 left in the first quarter, and the Patriots haven't figured out the Charger D yet; they're not even close.

Maroney nearly runs over up man Willie Andrews fielding a VERY short kickoff, which Andrews hangs on to and brings back to the 35. Chargers bring only 4 and cover soft; no surprise, Brady to Welker for 9. 3-man rush, and Brady's throw is TERRIBLE, a mile over Randy Moss' head. I think that was the first throw to Moss. On 3rd-and-1, Heath Evans bangs off his blocker's back and surges through for 4. Big play. Patriots at their 47. Play-action end-around to Moss, who cuts it back inside for 14. Key block by Nick Kaczur. Quick screen to Kevin Faulk is nearly wild, but he catches it nicely and breaks a tackle to gain 14. Shaun Phillips blew the tackle. Pats are at the SD 25. Another quick screen to Faulk, for 4. Brady hits Donte Stallworth for 4 more as we end the first quarter.

=======San Diego 3, New England 0 after 1=======

3-0 Chargers after one, facing a very big 3rd-down play to start the 2nd.

Maroney pops outside left and gets the first down with no problem. Super block by FULLBACK Evans. Patriots are inside the 10. Brady gets all day, hits Faulk down to the 1. Maroney plunges in over right guard for the TD. Patriots lead 7-3. The Chargers screwed themselves with that awful kickoff, and NE cashed in on the decent field position. And Evans was huge that drive, with the gain on 3rd-and-1 at midfield and the big block on Maroney's 3rd-down conversion.

San Diego had better be ready to fire back, and they have to realize they can't be as soft on defense as they were this possession if they're going to go to Glendale.

Sproles is out to the 30 with the kick return. LT remains on the sideline with menstrual cramps. Rivers guns it to Vincent Jackson for 15. Rivers rolls out right off play-action and hits Jackson for a leaping 17-yard sideline catch. Chargers at the NE39. Turner up the middle for 3. Rivers hangs in against pressure and hits Turner over the middle for 6. The line gets him time again and he hits Jackson inside the 10. 21-yard gain over the middle. Here come the Chargers! Maybe a yard left for Turner. 2nd-goal, good coverage forces Rivers to roll out and Tedy Bruschi breaks up a goal line pass for Antonio Gates. First time I've called Gates' name today. Chargers take a timeout on 3rd-and-goal, 10:00 left in the half. Even if they settle for a FG here, this has been a big drive for them.

3rd-goal from the 9. Pats rush 4, Rivers sprints up and hits Chambers with a dumpoff for about 3, missing Jackson breaking free in the back of the end zone. Kaeding hits the 26-yarder to make it 7-6.

That was a major missed opportunity for Rivers, but on one good knee, he's playing better than he ever did for my FFL team, and he's outplaying Brady right now.

Let's see how the Charger defense responds to NE's previous TD drive.

By the way, if you want a website for looking up rosters and stuff, use something like sports.yahoo.com. Don't even try nfl.com today, it is a complete dog.

Another TERRIBLE kickoff by Kaeding brought across the 40 by Ellis Hobbs. I mean, what the hell is that, Kaeding? You've got the wind at your BACK! A kickoff with the wind at your BACK should NOT be coming down at the 15! Faulk wide open on the sideline for a quick pass for 13. The breakdowns kicking off are killing the Chargers. Maroney pounds right for 5 to put the Patriots at the SD42. Quick hitch to Welker for a couple. 3rd-3, huge play for San Diego, and Jammer makes it, swatting down a quick slant for Moss, who still doesn't have a catch. Kelley Washington makes a super play at the goal line to tip Chris Hanson's punt back in to pin the Chargers at the 4.

Turner drives up the middle for 4, then again for 3-4 more. LT is on the bench due to "coach's decision". Hopefully Norv identified that Turner is gutting it out and LT is playing like a wuss. 3rd-3. Pats rush 4, Samuels STICKS Sproles after a short catch but he's out of bounds for 4 yards and the 1st. From the 15, Turner back up the middle again for 2. Major misplay, though, on 2nd-and-8. Mike Vrabel goes down on the rush, but kicks Rivers' foot as he throws, and Samuel jumps Chambers for the pick. Major play for the Patriots, who take over at the Charger 23. Samuel came over Chambers' shoulder, tipped the ball and came away with it.

Phil Simms is calling #22 of the Patriots "Assante Samuels". I didn't realize Phil was from Missouri. He must have loved Sally Fields in Smokey and the Bandit.

The Chargers have no solution for the quick pass to Faulk, which works here for 12 and puts the Patriots at the Charger 13. Plenty of time for Brady on first down, and he hits Jabar Gaffney, who splits the Charger defense for a TD. I think they had both WRs on the left side running drag patterns. Gaffney came through 2nd, Shaun Phillips slipped and fell, play over. Phillips is having an atypically-poor game.

The Chargers were shutting the Pats down in the 1st by coming after Brady; they have inexplicably quit doing it, dropping into soft coverages, and they're getting burned.

New England leads 14-6 with 3:51 left in the half. San Diego must at least score again before halftime. They try Sproles off right tackle, for no gain. Ball is at the Charger 27. Rivers hits Chambers on the square out for 15. 1st down, TERRIBLE throw downfield by Rivers is picked off easily by Ellis Hobbs. That was WELL underthrown, and the wind's at San Diego's back! Hobbs fumbled but the Patriots still recover. That may be a killer.

Pats take over at their 23. Brady goes deep for Gaffney down the sideline but it's broken up. Faulk, who's vying for POTG, breaks a tackle and bounces outside right for 8. Randy Moss knocked down two Chargers on that play, so some credit to him for staying in the game even though he's not getting the ball. 3rd-and-2 for NE at the 2:00 warning. San Diego absolutely HAS to keep them from scoring again before halftime.

Chargers rush 4; Brady's pass is through Welker's hands to force a punt. Sproles returns Hanson's punt to the 35.

Shotgun draw to Sproles is good for 7. Chargers are NOT hurrying here. Another inside handoff to Sproles works big as he squirts through the line for 26. Man, that guy needs almost no space to get up to full speed. The ball came loose at the end of the play, and replay wants to review for a fumble. 0:49 left. Pretty easy call here that the ground caused the fumble. At least Triplette doesn't screw that up. 1st-and-10 Chargers at the NE32. Pats bluff a blitz and rush 5; Rivers hits Gates for 8. Chargers have been letting the clock run the whole drive and finally call TO here with :26 left. Another 5-man rush, swing pass to Sproles gains only 1 thanks to Brandon Merriweather's tackle. Rivers spends his last TO with 0:18 left. On 3rd-and-1, the Patriots use a timeout. There's probably time for a play, a spike and a FG attempt. A fake spike would be cool. Rivers, though, has to bail under pressure on a third-down pass attempt (I'd have been running) and chucks it out of bounds. On comes Kaeding on 4th down. NE calls a TO to freeze him, which may actually happen on a day this cold. But Kaeding, who's been unusually steady today, squeezes it in from 40 to bring the Chargers within 14-9.

=======New England 14, San Diego 9 at the half=======

Chargers are hanging in there nicely. Norv should stay with what he's doing on offense, but that defense needs to start coming after Brady again. Have Turner and Sproles ready to run when New England starts the inevitable blitzing in the 4th quarter. The main thing that's not working for the Pats is their third-down offense. They've blown a couple of third-and-shorts passing where they might have been better off power running.

Both Cowher the Chin and Shannon not-so-Sharpe are calling for Billy Volek to start the 2nd half. Two terrible INTs by Rivers, yes, but the Pats have only cashed one of them, and aside from those, I still say Rivers is outplaying Brady. He's hanging much tougher against pressure. On-the-field leadership isn't overrated.

Patriots start the second half from their 40 after another TERRIBLE kickoff by Kaeding, which is the untold story of this game. Moss whiffs on a sideline pass, 2nd down. Welker fields a lowball and hops forward for 9. Evans converts the 1st down. From the Charger 48, Maroney runs right for a yard. Luis Castillo sacks Brady on 2nd down. 3rd-12, huge play. Kaczur tries to chop block Phillips and misses badly, forcing Brady to rush his throw a little bit. A crossing Stallworth can only get one hand on it, and he DOH! tips the ball up and to Drayton Florence for an INT to the Patriot 49.

What'd I say about pressuring Brady!

Turner plows up the middle for 4. Play action on 2nd down, Rivers hits Vinny Jack for 17. Play action again, Rivers limps away from the rush and throws it away. 2nd-10 from the NE28. Rivers boldly limps out right, hangs in against a big rush from Rashad Moore and Chris Chambers makes a spectacular sideline catch at the 13, falling out of bounds but with all his toes in. 6 to Vinny Jack. Jackson is the breakout player of the 2007 postseason. Turner gets about 3 up the middle. 3rd-and-1 at the 4-yard line, San Diego calls timeout. 3rd-and-a LONG 1, classless Seau makes a huge play to slash behind the Charger line and take Turner down for a 1-yard loss. That forces the Chargers to retreat into FG formation, and Kaeding hits from 24 to bring San Diego within 14-12. See if that loss on 3rd-and-1 isn't a game-turner.

Simms has been ripping the CBS studio crew up one side and down the other for suggesting Volek should have gone in for Rivers. I love it.

Maroney out to the 33 with the kick. There's no wind now, and Kaeding can still only get it down to the 12. Nice run by Maroney, who cuts it back left, breaks a poor tackle by Cromartie and breaks it open for 18. Pats have to blow a timeout at the Charger 49, though. After the TO, Maroney tries to sweep right but can't get any room. Big pump fake by Brady on 2nd down, and Moss is all alone down the sideline for 18. Again with the soft coverage crap, SD. Another nice cutback left by Maroney, who runs right through Clinton Hart for 11. Patriots at the SD 20. Uh-oh, Maroney is taking over. Nice hesitation run left for 6. He appears to have the first down on another cutback run. 1st-goal at the 10. Nothing for Maroney over the right side. Chargers rush 4 and Brady hits Welker at the 2. 3rd-and-goal, it looks like Brady's going to have Watson for a game-clinching TD but Antonio Cromartie pops out of the weeds to pick it off in the end zone and return it to the 4. Chargers' soft defensive scheme was justified there. Too bad Cromartie didn't think to kneel in the end zone, but the Charger D continues to give the Patriots all they can handle.

Turner busts for 12 off the left side. 3 more on 1st down. 2:00 left in the 3rd. Rivers throws it away on 2nd down. Vrabel appeared to get a good rush because he jumped offsides with no call. All the same, it looks like Triplette and co. have called a clean game, which would be an even bigger upset than the Chargers pulling out a win today. Pats blitz Harrison and Rivers misses connections with MANU to force a punt. Scifres gets lucky when his poor punt rolls down to the 33.

Evans wide open in the soft zone for 13. Maroney cuts back up the middle for 3 out to midfield. The Patriots let the quarter run out.

=======New England 14, San Diego 12 after 3=======

Full credit to the Chargers for making a game out of this thing. We've seen the Patriots start to turn up the blitz a little; I'd like to see them draw to Sproles on one of these big 3rd downs - could break the game open. Power running game is working for New England, but the Chargers have a sack, three picks and are holding the Pats well below their season averages. I'm not a fan of their soft coverages, but really, they shouldn't change a thing. At least if you do blitz, pick a good spot.

Brady opens the 4th with a quick screen to Welker for 10. That's been there all day. 1st down at the SD40. Maroney pops through a big hole, breaks Hart's AWFUL diving one-handed tackle attempt and breaks it back across the field for 20. That may have been a backbreaker. Screen to Maroney for 9, as he bowls McCree out of bounds. Hart is the one who's down injured, though, and we take a break. On 2nd-and-1, Maroney pounds down to the 7 to make it 1st-and-goal. Lawrence up the middle again for 1. He comes out on 2nd down. Chargers blitz but Brady has enough time to find Welker for the TD. Nobody picked up Welker coming across the middle; Florence's pursuit was VERY half-hearted, and the Patriots go up 21-12.

Maroney's been the story in the 2nd half, though; great credit to the Patriot sideline for the adjustments to their game plan.

Gostkowski's kick is FIVE YARDS DEEP in the end zone, and Sproles can only bring it out to the 16. Why don't more teams use the tried, true and amazingly simple strategy of KICKING IT DEEP? Rivers to Chambers for 16. Patriots blitz and force a poor incompletion behind Chambers. On 2nd down, the Pats blow up a screen; Rivers smartly bounces it toward Sproles to avoid a sack or a big loss. 3rd down, spectacular leaping catch by Vinny Jack at the 50 for the 1st. Rivers finds Gates in the flat for 9. Ball at the NE40. Turner hesitates but is not lost, slipping through the hole for 4. Pats blitz big, and Gates does not expect the pass, which bounces off him incomplete. 2nd-10, Wilfork tips the pass at the line and worthless piece of shit Harrison nearly picks it off. 3rd-10. Pats blitz big, which seems a poor call, but Rivers has to unload quickly and can't find anyone. I would have loved a run there. WHY IS SAN DIEGO PUNTING? Scifres "pins" the Patriots at the 12. I don't like that call at all.

Patriots from their 12. Maroney sweeps right for 12 but goes out of bounds. Chargers blitz big up the middle next and drop Brady for an 8-yard loss. Brady never had a chance. Funny what happens when you go after him, eh? 2nd-18. Faulk gets 7 on an underneath screen. 3rd-11. Look for Welker! Splendid diving catch by Faulk for the 1st. Brady immediately saw him open when the safety Weddle, who was supposed to cover him, ran into a pick. Major major play there. Maroney gains 1 to the left. LaDainian sure looks cozy on the bench. Hopefully for San Diego, he won't be on his period all of the next postseason they make. Chargers blow a timeout on defense; they have one left. Stallworth gains 6 with a quick screen, spinning out of a tackle for loss. 3rd-3 from the NE42. 5:20 left; San Diego's got to have a stop. No, Faulk's open over the middle and gains 14. Maroney over left tackle for 2, then up the middle for 4 more. Chargers use their final timeout at 3:36. 3rd-3, Maroney blasts over left tackle for 6. That basically ends this one. 3 more for Laurence. 2nd-6 at the SD28. Maroney cuts it inside for a couple as we hit the 2:00 warning.

Norv must sure be glad he punted. Maroney ends the game with another run right for 4.

So, the Patriots are 18-0 and the obvious favorite to win Super Bowl XLII. Scarily, they won with Brady having far from his best game. It's got to feel good to know Maroney can carry the offense in a big game if they need him to. Maroney is the obvious player of the game, with runner up going to Matt Light, who Maroney ran behind a lot of the game.

Thumbs up to San Diego for the superior effort. A fully healthy team as good as San Diego on paper very well could have gotten the Pats today. This is a team that can mostly stand pat in the offseason. They need to make sure they don't screw up their team chemistry, and could maybe come up with a better tackler or two in the secondary. Maybe also somebody who can KICK DEEP.

As for SB42, the Packers have the secondary and the rush up front to make Brady look as ordinary as he looked today. I'd pick the Packers to cover, at least. I don't see the banged-up Giant secondary hanging with the Patriot receivers, though they too have a disruptive pass rush. The Patriots I saw today were beatable; the Packers have a good shot at it.

I'm going to have several interruptions while trying to blog the NFC Championship, but I'll give it a shot.