Sproles increases market value
What a fantastic game last night between the Chargers and Colts: one of the best on Wild Card weekend I've ever seen. Both defenses showed up well, and the game felt like it could change on one play for all 60 minutes. In the end, Mike Scifres' punting, Tim Dobbins' sack, and two calm drives by Philip Rivers, Darren Sproles and the Chargers carried the day.
San Diego's two most impressive wins this decade have come with virtually no help from LaDainian Tomlinson. The Chargers should do what they can to keep Sproles, but he made himself a lot of money last night. The fumbles continue to be a huge concern, but he'd look great as half of a committee in, say, Arizona or New England.
Despite San Diego's impressive play, the Colts probably win the game if they win the coin flip. Such is life; they had chances to close the game out on offense and defense in the fourth quarter. San Diego's defense certainly made enough plays to win, and Indy's total lack of a running game came back to bite them.
Both teams got impressive pressure on the quarterback, and I thought Robert Mathis and Dwight Freeney's drive-killing four sacks would carry the day. Instead it was Antonio Gates' drive-sustaining catches, Sproles' big runs, and untimely Colts penalties. The much-maligned Chargers secondary held up well, with a big assist from Ron Rivera's play-calling.
Final thought: Jamal Williams saying "Game Over" after the coin flip in overtime immediately joins Hasselbeck's empty promise as one of the greatest moments in coin flip history.
If you have any interest in hearing 1000 more words of my undisciplined thoughts about this game, check out the game blurbs from last night. Be back in a minute with links from around the league.
