The Indianapolis Colts came into this game red hot winning three straight, and two of those coming against NFC powerhouses San Francisco and Seattle. Andrew Luck is proving to everyone he is a top quarterback and was well worth the #1 overall pick. But any team traveling to the west coast and trying to win a football game will often find their challenges. And there was no exception this time as the Chargers running game and their defense won the game on Monday night.

The Colts started off the game with a focus to come out flying, and a flea flicker on the first play of the game sure showed that. They executed the play and Luck hit Reggie Wayne down the right sideline for 35 yards. Unfortunately the drive got stifled and the Colts were forced to send out Adam Vinatieri to attempt a 30 yard field, which he nailed through the uprights.

Philip Rivers and the Chargers started off slowly. Rivers begin the night completing just 1 of 6 passes – the Colts were getting a lot of pressure on him and he was forced to throw multiple balls into the dirt. But on their third drive, they started executing on their plays and assembled an impressive 12 play, 74-yard drive, finished off by a 22-yard touchdown pass from Rivers to Keenan Allen to give San Diego their first lead of the game early in the second quarter.

Meanwhile the Colts initial momentum from their opening play was lost. They were struggling, not being able to muster a long drive and seemingly looked lost on a number of plays, dropping open passes and not being precise on their routes.

The Chargers dominated on time of possession in the second quarter, with almost 11 minutes. They held the Colts offense to a field goal on their final drive, and went into the locker room at halftime with a 10-6 lead.

The third quarter was much of the same – San Diego was upping the tempo and running the down ball down Indy’s throat. Ryan Mathews looked impressive, running the ball with a purpose. He was getting off the line with a burst and hitting the holes hard and often.

The Chargers defense was throwing many different looks at the Colts offense, with a lot of cover packages that were confusing Luck and his receivers. San Diego’s defense was flying all over the field and forced Indy to a mere two first downs in the entire third quarter.

San Diego started the fourth quarter with possession, continuing to eat up the clock and run the ball. They ended that drive with another field goal, but they managed to take 9:13 off the clock, increasing their lead to 10, with only 10 minutes left in the game. But Indianapolis quickly answered with a field goal of their own to close the gap, making it a one possession game.

With 4:40 left in the fourth quarter, San Diego punted the ball and Indy got their chance to tie the game. Luck and the Colts started the drive at their own nine yard line. But it was quickly falling apart after a personal foul and another dropped pass. They were forced into third and long and Coby Fleener couldn’t reach the first down marker, which prompted the Colts to punt the ball back to San Diego from their own 18. From there, Ryan Mathews closed the game out adding 23 yards on the ground. Nick Novak ended the Colts chances after he hit a 50-yard field and made the game 19-9.

The Colts got the ball back with under two minutes, but it was too late. Luck forced the ball downfield into heavy coverage and got intercepted by Derek Cox.

San Diego played a mistake costless game and controlled the momentum the entire second half. They finished the game with 38:31 time of possession to a sheer 21:29 for the Colts. Ryan Mathews, a big star of the game, carried the ball 22 times and totaled 102 yards. The team compiled 147 yards on the ground. Nick Novak had a perfect game going 4-for-4 on his field goals. But the biggest star of the game was the San Diego defense which held Indianapolis’ fourth ranked offense without a touchdown and only nine points. They kept forcing Indy into difficult situations and didn’t stop hustling. 

San Diego now improves to 3-3 on the season as Indy drops to 4-2.

The Chargers have been inconsistent throughout the early part of season but they’re playing great football at home.

Rivers and company are showing that traveling to Qualcomm Stadium is no easy task.