NEW YORK, 20 December 2005 — Michael Turner of the San Diego Chargers raced for an 83-yard touchdown with less than three minutes to play to seal a 26-17 win over Indianapolis on Sunday which ended the Colts’ hopes of an unbeaten season.
Turner blunted a stirring second-half comeback bid by the Colts (13-1), who scored all 17 of their points in a six-minute span during a furious third-quarter rally.
The Chargers responded with a fourth-quarter recovery of their own to keep their AFC wildcard hopes alive and wreck the Colts’ dream of matching the 1972 Miami Dolphins by completing only the second undefeated campaign in league history.
“It’s tough to go 16-0,” Colts coach Tony Dungy told reporters. “You have to play well every week.
“Losing wasn’t what we wanted to do but if it brings us back with a little more resolve, then maybe something will come of it.” Trailing 16-0 midway through the third quarter, the Colts capitalized on two turnovers to take a 17-16 lead and ignite the home crowd at the RCA Dome.
Nate Kaeding, with his fourth field goal of the game, put San Diego up 19-17 with a 49-yard effort with 6:51 left.
Turner then burst down the sideline to clinch victory and send the crowd home in stunned silence.
Having already secured a playoff spot, a first-round bye and home field advantage, the Colts began the game as if a perfect season held little importance as the Chargers raced into a 13-0 first-half lead.
Quarterback Drew Brees capped a 42-yard drive with a 29-yard touchdown strike to Keenan McCardell.
Kaeding added field goals from 36 and 20 yards before the intermission and opened the third quarter with a 48-yard effort to push the Chargers 16-0 ahead.Suddenly, however, the momentum swung in the direction of the Colts.
The rally began with a 32-yard Mike Vanderjagt field goal and picked up steam as the Colts converted a Brees interception and fumble into touchdowns.
Following Gary Brackett’s interception, Edgerrin James ploughed his way over for a touchdown before Peyton Manning found Dallas Clark with a one-yard TD pass as Indianapolis led 17-16.
Manning, who was put under pressure all game and sacked four times by an aggressive San Diego defense, completed 26 of 45 passes for 336 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions.
Brees also threw for a touchdown and was intercepted twice while completing 22 of 33 passes for 255 yards.
“I feel disappointed that we lost, I really do,” said Manning, reflecting on his first defeat of the season. “We really wanted to win this game.
“Our goal is to win every week and that was our goal today.”
In Baton Rouge, Steve Smith ran for a touchdown and caught another as the Carolina Panthers strolled to a 27-10 win over the New Orleans Saints to take first place in the NFC South. Smith finished with six catches and 85 yards, giving him a single-season franchise record of 1,414 yards.
In Landover, Md., Mark Brunell tossed four first-half touchdown passes, including three to Chris Cooley, as the Washington Redskins routed the Dallas Cowboys 35-7.
In Detroit, Carson Palmer threw for 274 yards and three touchdowns and Rudi Johnson rushed for a pair of scores as the Cincinnati Bengals mauled the Lions 41-17 to claim their first division title since 1990.
In Nashville, Matt Hasselbeck threw for 285 yards and three touchdowns to help the Seattle Seahawks edge the Tennessee Titans 28-24 to earn a first-round playoff bye.
Shaun Alexander had another outstanding day, rushing for 172 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries as the surging Seahawks (12-2) notched their 10th win in a row.
In Miami, Sage Rosenfels came off the bench to direct two second-half touchdown drives which guided the Dolphins to a 24-20 victory over the New York Jets.
In Jacksonville, David Garrard ran for a touchdown and Josh Scobee booted the winning 32-yard field goal as the Jaguars edged the San Francisco 49ers 10-9 to keep alive their post-season hopes.
In Minneapolis, Ben Roethlisberger ran for one touchdown and Jeff Reed kicked three field goals as the Pittsburgh Steelers overcame the Minnesota Vikings 18-3 to snap their six-game winning streak.
In St. Louis, backup quarterback Mike McMahon threw a three-yard touchdown pass to Mike Bartrum on the first play of the fourth quarter to earn the Philadelphia Eagles a 17-16 triumph over the Rams.
In Houston, Jonathan Wells rushed for two touchdowns to spark the Texans to a 30-19 victory over the Arizona Cardinals.
In Oakland, Phil Dawson nailed a 37-yard field goal as time ran off the clock earning the Cleveland Browns a 9-7 win over the Raiders.
In Chicago, quarterback Rex Grossman came off the bench to engineer a pair of scoring drives in his first appearance of the season and Robbie Gould kicked three field goals to lead the Bears to a 16-3 win over the Atlanta Falcons.
