Manning's Colts defeated the Chargers in 1998 and 1999, but in 2004 with Leaf long gone from the game the revamped Chargers behind Drew Brees erupted into playoff contention ; on December 26 with both teams at 11-3 the Colts hosted the Chargers with Manning close to matching Dan Marino's touchdown record ; the Chargers stormed to a 31-16 lead, but Dominic Rhodes ' kickoff return put the Colts within eight points, then with one minute remaining Manning rifled a 21-yard touchdown to Brandon Stokley, breaking Marino's record ; the two-point try succeeded, then after Brees was intercepted the game went to overtime and the Colts won 34-31 on a field goal.

First on November 11, with the Chargers up only 23-21 and despite five Manning interceptions, the Colts closed to range of a 29-yard field goal try for Adam Vinatieri, a kick that shockingly missed ; Manning then threw a sixth interception and the Chargers won.

QB Bob Greise was victim to a broken leg and dislocated ankle in Week 5 versus the San Diego Chargers and was replaced by veteran Earl Morrall for the rest of the regular season, but returned to the field as a substitute during the AFC Championship game versus the Pittsburgh Steelers and then started in Super Bowl VII.

In the 34 years since then, the Chargers have made ten trips to the playoffs and four appearances in the AFC Championship game.

But by then, the Chargers fell on hard times ; Gillman, who had returned as general manager, stepped down in 1971, and many of the Charger players from the 1960s had already either retired or had been traded.

The team then used their second first round selection on defensive tackle Luis Castillo. The Chargers started the season without tight end Antonio Gates as he was suspended two games by Smith for holding out in training camp.

The Chargers would retake the lead on a field goal by Kaeding then scored again on an 83-yard touchdown run by Michael Turner.

The Chargers then went on another second half run with four straight wins but this time instead of keeping the streak going the entire second half they had a big let down losing at home to the Raiders again, this time 28 – 13 ( ending their shared NFL record, with the Dolphins, of 18 straight wins in December ).

The Chargers then began a three game winning streak most notably beating the Ravens by more than any team has beat them this season.

On October 27, 2003, the Chargers wore their navy pants with their navy jersey for a Monday Night Football game versus the Miami Dolphins that was played at Sun Devil Stadium, then the home of the Arizona Cardinals, due to wildfires in southern California.

The Bengals went on to win their first ever playoff game by defeating the Buffalo Bills, 28-21, and then defeated San Diego Chargers, 27-7, in a game known as the Freezer Bowl because of the-59 windchill conditions at Riverfront Stadium.

The Chargers then took a 17-13 lead when Martin beat the Steelers secondary ( particularly a badly overmatched Tim McKyer ) down the right sideline for a 43-yard touchdown reception.

After forcing the Chargers to punt, the 49ers advanced 79 yards in four plays, with Young rushing for 21 yards and then throwing 51-yard touchdown pass to running back Ricky Watters to give San Francisco a 14-0 lead less than 5 minutes into the first quarter, and setting a Super Bowl record for the fastest " second " touchdown scored by a team.

The Chargers then drove to their own 46-yard line, but 49ers defensive back Eric Davis intercepted Humphries ' third down pass in the end zone with 10 seconds left in the half, and the score remained 28-10 at halftime.

Cowher then led the Steelers into the playoffs in 1993 and 1994 but were also eliminated, including a 17 – 13 upset loss to the San Diego Chargers in the AFC Championship Game.

He then moved to the ranks of professional football, where he headed the NFL's Los Angeles Rams ( 1955 – 1959 ), the American Football League's Los Angeles and San Diego Chargers ( 1960 – 1969 ), and the NFL's Chargers ( 1971 ), and Houston Oilers ( 1973 – 1974 ), amassing a career record of 123 – 104 – 7 in the National Football League and the American Football League.

Raiders quarterback Ken Stabler took the snap and found himself about to be sacked by Chargers linebacker Woodrow Lowe on the 24-yard line.

Facing the 13 – 0 Colts on the road, the Chargers took a 16 – 0 lead into the third quarter of the game, but the Colts responded with 17 points of their own to take a one-point lead in the fourth quarter.

When the team's general manager, Frank Leahy, became ill during the Chargers ' founding season, Gillman took on additional responsibilities as general manager.

In 2009 the Lady Chargers Varsity soccer team took state.

Palmer was on course for a perfect passer rating of 158. 3 until he took a hit from Chargers ' linebacker Travis LaBoy while attempting a pass early in the Fourth Quarter that resulted in wobbly pass picked-off by Paul Oliver.

Raiders quarterback Ken Stabler took the snap and found himself about to be sacked by Chargers linebacker Woodrow Lowe on the 24-yard line.

He was replaced as the starter by Tim Tebow during the week 5 contest against the San Diego Chargers, and Orton never took another snap for the Broncos.

New York took the opening kickoff and drove to the Chargers 11-yard line.

After serving as an assistant with the San Diego Chargers in 1973, he took a similar position the following year with the Browns.

In overtime, the Chargers took the opening kickoff and advanced to the Miami 8-yard line, but Benirschke missed a 27-yard field goal attempt.

Down 17-14 the Chargers sacked Manning near his own goal line ; following the ensuing punt they clawed to range of a successful Nate Kaeding field goal ; the game to overtime and two Colts defensive penalties helped set up a 22-yard Darren Sproles touchdown and the 23-17 San Diego win.

On their final drive, The Steelers advanced to the San Diego 3-yard line on their ensuing drive, but Chargers linebacker Dennis Gibson sealed the victory on fourth down by deflecting quarterback Neil O ' Donnell's pass intended for running back Barry Foster to turn the ball back over to San Diego.

The Chargers responded on their ensuing possession, marching 78 yards in 13 plays and taking more than 7 minutes off the clock.

The Chargers ' only highlight of the 3rd quarter was when Coleman returned the ensuing kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown.

He started no fewer than 13 games for the Chargers over each of the ensuing 11 seasons, registering a career high with 155 tackles in 1994.

On their ensuing drive, the Chargers mounter a scoring threat by moving the ball to the Jets 37-yard line, but Reggie Tongue intercepted a pass from Brees and the score remained tied at halftime.

Perry recorded another interception on the Chargers 38-yard line on the ensuing possession, and Boobie Clark ran for a 1-yard touchdown to give the Oilers a 10-7 lead.

Then Chargers ' rookie kick returner James Brooks lost a fumble on the ensuing kickoff, and the Bengals scored a touchdown on an 8-yard pass from Anderson to tight end M. L. Harris, increasing their lead to 10-0.

Meanwhile, the Chargers special teams was also a major threat with Andre Coleman, who returned 49 kickoffs for 1, 293 yards ( 26. 4 average yards per kickoff ) and 2 touchdowns.

On the opening kickoff, a 15-yard facemask penalty on Chargers linebacker Doug Miller gave San Francisco the ball at their own 41-yard line.

After a 33-yard kickoff return by Andre Coleman, the Chargers advanced to the San Francisco 33-yard line, but they turned the ball over on downs when Humphries ' fourth down pass was broken up by Davis.

In 1961 he caught a record-setting 91 yard TD pass ; in 1962, he ran a kickoff back for a Chargers ' record 103 yards.

The 2001 Chargers ended their season with a loss to the Seattle Seahawks, after Doug Flutie passed for 377 yards and drove for the tying field goal with 16 seconds remaining, but poor special teams play led to a long Seahawks kick return and subsequently a 54-yard winning field goal.

After an exchange of punts in overtime, the Chargers drove to the Jets 22-yard line, but Kaeding missed a 40-yard field goal attempt late in the extra period, allowing the Jets to come back down the field.

While a member of the Chargers in 2006, Akbar routinely drove back-and-forth from San Diego to Los Angeles to spend time with his father.