Bombs away!

On a night when the Chargers honored a defender from the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, the Bolts’ offense put on a show that was reminiscent of the Air Coryell days.

With the Chargers holding New England to just 299 total yards, it was a performance that would make a defender like Fred Dean proud as well.

Philip Rivers threw 3 touchdown passes and the Chargers kept the defending AFC Champions out of the end zone until late in the fourth quarter as the Bolts delivered an emphatic 30-10 victory at Qualcomm Stadium Sunday night. Dean was inducted into the Chargers Hall of Fame during a halftime ceremony.

The Chargers came out firing from the get go as Rivers connected with Vincent Jackson for a 48-yard gain on the first play of the game. The long completion set up a 25-yard Nate Kaeding field goal that gave the Bolts a quick 3-0 lead.

The deep ball worked again on the Chargers’ second drive of the night when Rivers connected with Malcom Floyd for a 49-yard touchdown. Kaeding’s PAT made it a 10-0 contest midway through the first quarter.

The Bolts pressured New England throughout the night and kept the Patriots from finding much of a rhythm on offense. The Chargers sacked Pats quarterback Matt Cassel four times, making the signal caller’s fourth-career start a difficult one. Stephen Gostkowski’s 47-yard field goal in the second quarter accounted for New England’s only points of the first half.

After the Chargers forced a three-and-out late in the second quarter, Darren Sproles put the Bolts on the doorstep with a 22-yard punt return that helped extend the lead. A 17-yard catch by Floyd set up a four-yard touchdown catch by Jackson. Rivers’ second touchdown toss of the night made it a 17-3 game just before halftime.

On the opening possession of the third quarter, New England drove 87 yards to the Chargers’ one yard line, but the Bolts denied Cassel and company on four-consecutive attempts from three feet shy of the end zone as the Pats came up empty on the long drive.

Rivers responded with a 59-yard toss to Jackson to get out of the shadow of the end zone. After a 32-yard pass interference penalty, Rivers threw a one-yard touchdown pass to tight end Antonio Gates to push the lead to 24-3.

Cornerback Quentin Jammer had a monster night, holding Randy Moss to just three catches, and he ended a Patriots drive with a third-quarter pick of Cassel. That led to three more points for the Chargers as Kaeding hit a 35-yard field goal on the resulting drive. Kaeding added a third field goal in the fourth quarter that made it a 30-3 contest.

Late the fourth quarter, New England capitalized on one of few mistakes the Chargers made. Following a fumble recovery, Pats running back Sammy Morris scored a one-yard touchdown to bring it to 30-10 with 5:16 remaining in the game.

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