On a weekend when snowbound travelers on the East Coast were prevented from getting to their destinations, the San Diego Chargers used a very reliable way to get from Point A to Point B:
The foot of Nate Kaeding.
He kicked a 52-yard field goal with three seconds to play Sunday, lifting the Chargers to a 27-24 victory over Cincinnati at Qualcomm Stadium.
“There was a lot of adrenaline in that kind of situation, coming down to the wire and going for the win,” said Kaeding, whose team has won nine straight. “Once it came off my foot, I knew it was good, and mayhem ensued from there.”
Philip Rivers directed the winning drive, moving the Chargers 46 yards into field-goal position in 51 seconds with no timeouts. San Diego is 17-0 in December with Rivers as its starting quarterback.
Minutes after their victory, the Chargers got another boost from the unlikeliest of allies. The Oakland Raiders — with beleaguered quarterback JaMarcus Russell coming off the bench — stunned the Broncos at Denver, 20-19, a shocker that clinched the AFC West for San Diego.
It was just another wild series of events in on a day that — despite frigid temperatures for much of the country — was as hotly contested as any this NFL season.
Playoffs-wise, Week 15 featured far more parity than clarity. In the AFC, the undefeated Colts have clinched the AFC and home-field advantage; the Chargers have locked up their division; and the Patriots and Bengals have the inside track on the East and North. The Ravens and Broncos are each 8-6, and six teams still have varying degrees of hope at 7-7: the Jaguars, Dolphins, Jets, Steelers, Titans and Texans. Things are a bit more clear in the NFC, where the Saints, Vikings and Cardinals have won their divisions, and the Eagles has at least secured a playoff spot. The Packers and Cowboys are in the lead for wild-card berths, and the Giants, who play at Washington on Monday night, have faintly flickering hopes.
Honoring Henry: Two high-profile receivers paid somber homage to the Bengals’ Chris Henry, who died last week after suffering injuries from falling out of a pickup truck.
The Broncos’ Brandon Marshall wore a “Henry” nameplate on his jersey during warm-ups before switching back to “Marshall” for the game. It’s likely he will be fined by the league for doing so.
Chad Ochocinco, a fellow Bengals receiver, pointed to the sky more than once after making big plays against the Chargers.
“It was a little empty feeling,” Ochocinco said. “It was bigger than football without him. Today I played with an extra set of hands, an extra set of legs and an extra heart.”
Brown out: Jerome Harrison, a little-known Browns back, had a spectacular day in a 41-34 win at Kansas City.
He rushed for 286 yards and three touchdowns, shattering Jim Brown’s single-game club record of 237 yards. Coming into the game, Harrison had just 301 yards this season and had never run for more than 121 yards in a game.
Brown, among the greatest players in NFL history, congratulated Harrison after the game and told the AP: “I was seeing a phenom — unbelievable.”
Teammate Joshua Cribbs returned two kickoffs for touchdowns, bringing his career runback total to eight, an NFL record.
Holmgren to Cleveland?: Mike Holmgren is expected to decide Monday whether to become the Browns’ director of football operations, ESPN reported. His deal is expected to be worth $50 million, perhaps for 10 years.
Studying the problem: The NFL is partnering with researchers at Boston University who are studying the lingering effects of brain injuries on players, the AP reported.
Robert Cantu, co-director of the school’s research program, called the development “huge” and said it “allows players to realize the NFL is concerned about the possibility that they could have this problem and … is doing everything it can to find out about the risks.”
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sfarmer@tribune.com
