Chargers beat Falcons 33-30 in OT on Lambo's 42-yard FG

Josh Lambo said kicking his game-winning field goal - his fourth of the game - was no more difficult than an extra point.

The hard work, according to the kicker, was handled byDenzel Perryman and San Diego's defense.

Lambo's 42-yard field goal in overtime gave San Diego its first road victory of the year, as the Chargers rallied from a 17-point deficit to beat the Atlanta Falcons 33-30 on Sunday.

Perryman, the linebacker still obviously affected by a shoulder injury that forced him to miss the Chargers' Oct. 9 loss to Oakland, delivered two key plays late in the game. His interception of Matt Ryan's pass for Julio Jones set up Lambo's tying 33-yard field goal with 18 seconds remaining in regulation.

Perryman's fourth-and-1 stop on running back Devonta Freeman gave San Diego the ball at Atlanta's 43 for the Chargers' winning drive.

"Credit the defense," Lambo said. "Everyone on the team is making my job easy."

Perryman grabbed Freeman's legs behind the line for the key tackle on the Falcons' gamble.

"It was just instincts," Perryman said. "On fourth-and-1, it was a no-brainer that they were going to run the ball. ... I just got Freeman's leg and hung on."

Falcons coach Dan Quinn stood by the play call even though Freeman lost two yards on a run three plays earlier.

"Just a gut feeling I had," Quinn said of the fourth-down decision. "Go be aggressive and get that half yard that we needed and when we didn't get it that was (the loss)."

The Chargers (3-4) trailed 27-10 in the second quarter after the Falcons scored three straight touchdowns.

"There was no panic," said Chargers coach Mike McCoy. "There was nothing. It was just, `Hey, you've got to believe in what we're doing.' It's just one play at a time."

Melvin Gordon ran for 68 yards and two touchdowns and added a 5-yard scoring catch early in the fourth quarter, cutting Atlanta's lead to 30-27.

Atlanta's Matt Bryant missed his attempt for a 58-yard field goal on the final play of regulation.

The Falcons (4-3) have lost two straight.

"It's frustrating," said offensive tackle Jake Matthews. "We were up big and let it get away."

Jones had nine catches for 174 yards.

PROTEST: Five San Diego players raised their clenched right fists as their protest during the national anthem. Standing together on the San Diego sideline, offensive linemen D.J. Fluker, Chris Hairston and Joe Barksdaleand linebacker Joshua Perry held up their fists as they stood. Offensive tackle Tyreek Burwell, inactive and not in uniform, also raised his fist as part of the protest.

There were no demonstrations from Falcons players.

LONG ROAD: The Chargers had lost 10 of 11 road games. The stretch that began with the final road game in 2014 included losses in San Diego's first three road games this season.

200 AGAIN: Ryan passed for 273 yards for his NFL-record 46th consecutive game with more than 200 yards passing. He threw a 17-yard scoring pass to tight end Jacob Tamme in the second quarter.

THROWBACK: The Falcons wore black jerseys in what they called a "modern interpretation" of their 1966 uniforms. Due to NFL safety rules which require teams to use only one helmet, they wore their normal black helmets, though they switched to the original Falcons logo. They wore red helmets in 1966.

INJURIES: Chargers defensive tackle Caraun Reid was carted off with a left knee injury in the first quarter and did not return. Reid had a teammate fall on his leg on a Falcons completion to tight end Levine Toilolo.

Tevin Coleman led Atlanta with 64 yards rushing, including a 30-yard touchdown run, before leaving with a hamstring injury. Quinn said he had no immediate update on the severity of the injury.

UP NEXT

The Chargers visit Denver next Sunday, while the Falcons play another home game against Green Bay.

Rivers leads Chargers to 21-13 victory against Broncos

Music blared louder than normal in the San Diego Chargers' locker room, and there was a sense of relief Thursday night after a victory over the Denver Broncos.

The Chargers had actually finished.

Philip Rivers threw for 178 yards and one touchdown, passing Hall of Famer Dan Fouts to become San Diego's career passing leader, and the Chargers held off the Broncos 21-13.

The victory may have saved embattled coach Mike McCoy's job .

The Chargers (2-4) were coming off a mistake-filled loss at Oakland, and earlier in the season lost three games in which they led at the 2-minute warning. There has been increasing fan discontent with the conservative McCoy, and the Chargers are trying to convince voters to approve a $1.1 billion public handout for a new downtown stadium in the form of an increase in the hotel occupancy tax.

"There is nothing like winning," a misty-eyed McCoy said. "Especially beating a good football team in front of are home fans. It was great."

The victory "meant a ton for Mike," Rivers said. "It wasn't talked about a lot on the team but veteran players ... I felt it. Not that I expected it if it didn't go well. I had no idea but you also you are not playing dumb. We knew we had to get this thing going in a hurry."

The Broncos had the ball in the final seconds, but the Chargers - who had two turnovers on special teams -held.

"You can't take winning for granted in this league," defensive end Corey Liuget said. "When I saw it said 0:00 and that guy didn't catch that ball, I was happy as hell. I got on my damn knee and said, `Thank you Lord. It's over now.'"

What changed from those brutal losses, when the Chargers blew late leads?

"It was a mindset for us to go out there and finish, and everyone knew we were going to finish this game," Li

The defending Super Bowl champion Broncos were coached by special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis after Gary Kubiak was ordered by doctors to sit this one out because of a migraine condition that mimics strokes.

"You have to give them credit," DeCamillis said. "We know it would be a tough game because they have played a lot of close games and not won."

The five-time defending AFC West champion Broncos (4-2) were mostly sluggish behind Trevor Siemian, who was back at quarterback after rookie Paxton Lynch struggled in a loss to Atlanta. They lost their second straight game and had their NFL-record 15 straight divisional road victories snapped.

The Chargers snapped their streak of 10 straight divisional losses dating to 2014.

Rivers, in his 13th season with the Chargers and 11th as starter, has 43,094 career yards passing. Fouts threw for 43,040 yards in 15 seasons with the Bolts.

Rivers threw a 5-yard scoring pass to rookie tight end Hunter Henry to cap the game's first possession. Rivers finished 18 of 29.

Otherwise, the Chargers had to settle for Lambo's career-high four field goals, of 37, 21, 31 and 32 yards.

LATE-FIRING BRONCOS: Denver didn't get across the 50 on its own accord until there were just 2 minutes left in the third quarter. Denver's first score came after a punt bounced off San Diego's Travis Benjamin and the Broncos recovered at the San Diego 11. The refs initially ruled that the Broncos downed the punt, but Denver challenged and got the ball. Brandon McManus kicked a 29-yard field goal.

Siemian was 30 of 50 for 230 yards, with a 5-yard scoring pass to Bennie Fowler midway through the fourth quarter.

McManus kicked a 46-yard field goal with 27 seconds left, and Denver recovered the onside kick at its 46. It got to the San Diego 45 with eight seconds to go before Siemian's desperation pass was batted down by Dexter McCoil.

DEFENSIVE STAND: The Broncos were threatening at the San Diego 20 with less than 5 minutes to go. But on consecutive plays they were whistled for holding, Siemian was sacked by rookie Jatavis Brown and San Diego's Craig Mager recovered a fumble by Demaryius Thomas.

RIVERBOAT MIKE: McCoy went for it on fourth-and-1 from the Denver 20 early in the second half, withMelvin Gordon going over the top for a 1-yard gain. Rivers misfired on two straight passes and was flushed on third down, forcing the Chargers to settle for Lambo's 37-yard field goal for a 10-0 lead. McCoy improved to 25-31 overall in four seasons.

NEW HOLDER: Veteran backup quarterback Kellen Clemens took over as holder for the Chargers after rookieDrew Kaser's misadventure at Oakland on Sunday. Kaser mishandled the snap on a potential tying field goal with 2:07 left in the 34-31 loss. Kaser, who also shanked a punt, kept his job as punter but lost his job as holder.

ANTHEM WATCH: Chargers players Joe Barksdale, D.J. Fluker, Chris Hairston, Joshua Perry and Tyreek Burwell held up their right fists during the national anthem.

INJURIES: The Broncos said T Russell Okung was taken to a hospital with concussion-like symptoms. ... Chargers rookie DE Joey Bosa was having his right hand worked on by the trainers after Denver's first drive. He was back in for the next Broncos possession. ... Broncos WR Cody Latimer left with a concussion in the second quarter. ... Gordon limped off the field early in the fourth quarter. He had his right ankle taped and returned on San Diego's next possession.

Raiders take advantage of Chargers mistakes in 34-31 win

 Derek Carr threw a go-ahead 21-yard touchdown pass to Michael Crabtree on a fourth-and-2 gamble and added another TD pass to Amari Cooper to lead the Oakland Raiders to a 34-31 victory over the mistake-prone San Diego Chargers.

San Diego (1-4) committed four turnovers and then botched the hold on a potential tying field goal. Rookie Drew Kasercouldn't hold the snap on what would have been a 36-yard field goal attempt.

The Raiders (4-1) took over with 2 minutes left and ran out most of the clock to get a third straight win for the first time in five years and hand San Diego its 10th straight division loss.

Oakland took the lead on a bold call late in the third quarter. Facing a fourth-and-2 at the 21 late in the third quarter trailing by five, coach Jack Del Rio once again trusted his offense to make a big play and it paid off.

Carr found Crabtree deep down the left side for the touchdown that put the Raiders up 25-24. A 2-point conversion pass to Cooper gave Oakland a three-point lead and Jamize Olawale added a 1-yard run that made it 34-24 on a drive set up by Kaser's 16-yard punt.

Carr threw for 317 yards, including a 64-yard pass earlier in the third quarter that gave Cooper his first touchdown of the season. Cooper had six catches for a career-high 138 yards.

Philip Rivers threw for 365 yards and four scores for the Chargers, who were once again done in by their own mistakes. San Diego has three losses already this season in games it led at the two-minute warning.

BIG PLAY ROOKIE: First-round pick Karl Joseph, who started the season on the bench in Oakland, has made a big impact since becoming a starter in Week 3. He intercepted a pass from Rivers late in the first half to set up a field goal and then recovered a fumble to Melvin Gordon to set up Crabtree's TD.

BOSA'S DEBUT: Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa made an impressive debut after missing training camp during a nasty contract dispute and sitting out the first four games with a hamstring injury. He came in on the second drive and had a sack and a tackle for loss. He added a second sack in the fourth quarter.

FAIL TO CONVERT: The Raiders twice had first-and-goal in the first half and had to settle for short field goals. On both drives, Carr appeared to have a touchdown - except Cooper couldn't get both feet inbounds on catches near the sideline. Sebastian Janikowski attempted two other field goals in the first half, missing from 50 yards and connecting from 56 on the final play of the half to make it 10-9.

GIVE IT AWAY: After committing turnovers on the final three drives in last week's loss to New Orleans , the Chargers picked up where they left off. Antonio Gates was stripped on San Diego's first drive and lost a fumble with the Chargers in position to score. Rivers then was intercepted by Sean Smith on a deep pass on the Chargers next play from scrimmage. Rivers threw another interception late in the half, giving San Diego six turnovers in eight possessions. San Diego committed a fourth turnover late in the third quarter when Gordon fumbled, setting up Oakland's go-ahead score.

Brees, Saints stun Chargers in final minutes for 35-34 win

When the New Orleans Saints came to Qualcomm Stadium to stretch their legs after a long flight Saturday, Drew Brees walked to the spot in the west end zone where he suffered a career-changing injury on the last day of 2005, and said a prayer.

"It was a great time of reflecting, of just how far I've come and our team has come," Brees said.

Some 24 hours later, Qualcomm was the spot of a great celebration for Brees and the Saints. They rallied with two touchdowns in the final 4 minutes, 50 seconds for a stunning 35-34 victory against Philip Rivers and the San Diego Chargers, who blew a 13-point lead by committing two crucial turnovers.

"This was as much a team game, a team win, as I could ever remember," said Brees, who left the Chargers as a free agent in early 2006 and led the Saints to their only Super Bowl title four years later.

With the Chargers trying to protect a 34-21 lead, Melvin Gordon fumbled and Darryl Tapp recovered at the San Diego 13, setting up Brees' 5-yard TD pass to Michael Thomas on fourth-and-2 to pull to 34-28 with 4:50 to go.

Travis Benjamin then fumbled after a reception and Nate Stupar recovered at the San Diego 31. Seven plays later, fullback John Kuhn scored his third TD of the game, on a 1-yard run. The PAT made it 35-34.

Rivers, who was Brees' understudy for his first two NFL seasons, was intercepted by B.W. Webb with 1:10 to go.

After the final gun, Brees ran over to the stands and traded high-fives with jubilant Saints fans. After showering and doing postgame interviews, he came back out on the field with several family members and friends.

It was the first time Brees played at Qualcomm Stadium since Dec. 31, 2005, when he injured his throwing shoulder in his final appearance as Chargers quarterback. He had surgery and was allowed to leave as a free agent, signing with New Orleans.

That gave the starting job to Rivers.

"That last game in San Diego, I thought my career might have been over," Brees said. "As I walked off the field, I thought it might be the last game I would ever play."

The Saints took a chance on Brees, and four years later he led them to an NFL title.

Brees overcome two interceptions to led the Saints (1-3) to their first win.

It was the third time this season the Chargers (1-3) blew a late lead.

Chargers coach Mike McCoy was furious.

"That performance in the second half is flat-out unacceptable," McCoy said. "From the very opening kickoff return all the way to the very end. You cannot turn the ball over at critical times when you are trying to put the game away. Two times in a row. We absolutely gave this one away."

NO LEAD IS SAFE

The Chargers seemed to have it in control after Rivers directed a 14-play, 74-yard scoring drive capped by Gordon's second 1-yard scoring run of the game to give the Chargers a 31-21 lead with 12:15 to play. Rivers kept the drive alive with a pinpoint, 16-yard completion to Tyrell Williams to the New Orleans 7-yard line.

The Chargers have led in the fourth quarter of each of their three losses.

WHERE IT TURNED

The Chargers took a 24-14 halftime lead after scoring on three straight possessions, getting the 53-yard TD pass from Rivers to Inman, a 30-yard field goal from Josh Lambo and a 1-yard run by Gordon.

San Diego floundered on the opening drive of the second half, making fans nervous. Dexter McCluster caught the opening kickoff of the second half 6 yards deep and bringing it out only to the 15. The Chargers went three and out, and Brees led them on a drive culminated when Kuhn scored on a 1-yard run to pull the Saints to 24-21.

ATTENDANCE: The announced crowd was 60,641 at 70,000-seat Qualcomm stadium, the second home game this year well short of capacity. The Chargers are threatening to move to Los Angeles if voters don't approve a $1.1 billion stadium subsidy via an increase in hotel occupancy taxes.

ANTHEM PROTEST: Chargers Joshua Perry, Joe Barksdale, Chris Hairston, D.J. Fluker and Tyreek Burwellof held up their right fists during the national anthem.

INACTIVES: Chargers tight end Antonio Gates was inactive for the second straight week with a hamstring injury. Also out a second straight week was LT King Dunlap, who is bothered by migraines. ... Chargers lineman Chris Hairston limped off with a groin injury late in the second quarter. ... San Diego defensive endJoey Bosa, out indefinitely with a hamstring injury, has yet to make his NFL debut.

INJURIES: Chargers LG Orlando Franklin sustained a knee injury. ... Chargers LB Denzel Perryman injured a shoulder in the second quarter. ... Saints DE Paul Kruger suffered a back injury in the third quarter.

Luck, Hilton hook up to rally Colts past Chargers 26-22

 Andrew Luck missed T.Y. Hilton on one critical play Sunday. The Colts quarterback didn't make the same mistake again.

On his second chance, Luck threw a perfect strike to Hilton with 1:17 to play, and the Pro Bowl receiver spun out of a tackle and zig-zagged 63 yards down the field to give Indianapolis a 26-22 victory over San Diego.

Just 35 seconds earlier, Luck tried the same play with Hilton on fourth-and-7 but an off-target throw forced Hilton to spin around for an 8-yard catch on fourth-and-7. The next time, Luck got it right.

"It was the same sort of play and I kind of missed him," Luck said, referring to the fourth-down throw. "So I came back to him and this time I hit him in stride."

Hilton took care of the rest.

It's the second time on Luck's home turf that he has led the Colts (1-2) to a go-ahead score in the waning seconds. But, unlike the season opener two weeks ago, the Colts recovered two fumbles in the final 62 seconds to preserve the victory.

Luck finished 24 of 37 for 331 yards with one TD and one interception to earn his 15th career come-from-behind win.

No, he wasn't flawless. But when it mattered most, Luck excelled with the two big plays to Hilton.

Philip Rivers got two chances to win it. The first ended when Pro Bowl safety Mike Adams recovered a fumble with 62 seconds left. The second ended when linebacker D'Qwell Jackson covered the bouncing ball on the Chargers' last gasp desperation play.

Rivers was 26 of 39 for 330 yards.

"You have to put teams away when you have opportunities to do it or make the plays earlier in the game," Chargers coach Mike McCoy said. "We didn't do that for four quarters. We have to make those plays."

STILL WAITING

Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa practiced in pads for the first time this week. The No. 3 overall draft pick still has not made his NFL debut. After showing up following a prolonged contract holdout, Bosa's return was set back by a hamstring injury. Now the question is how much longer will the Chargers keep him out?

DIGGING OUT

Indy still hasn't started 0-3 since 2011, when Peyton Manning missed the entire season with an injured nerve. How big was this win? Since the current playoff format took effect in 1990, only five 0-3 teams have made the postseason and nobody has done it since the 1998 Buffalo Bills.

STRANGE DAYS

On what was supposed to be the final play of the game, the Chargers had no punt returner so they could send everyone to block Pat McAfee's kick. McAfee pooched it inside the Chargers' 20-yard line where the Colts downed it. One problem: The refs called illegal touching, giving San Diego an untimed play. Afterward, Pagano explained the Colts weren't allowed to touch it until the refs blew the ball dead.

THEY SAID IT

Chargers: Rivers on the unsportsmanlike conduct call he drew after a 43-yard completion put San Diego at the Indy 6: "That's the most unfair penalty I've ever gotten. I've never gotten one like that. I've never gotten one for really doing nothing. It maybe was the cleanest thing said on that field today and he (the official) was 30 yards away. From what I hear, it looked like nothing on the TV, but I don't know."

Colts: Coach Chuck Pagano on his thoughts as Hilton broke the tackle: "Probably like you guys, too much time on the clock. If you're going to score, don't score so fast."

INJURY REPORT

Chargers: Linebacker Manti Te'o came in as San Diego's leading tackler, but left in the first quarter with an Achilles tendon injury and did not return. The injury occurred when he appeared to plant his left leg while chasing Gore into the flat. McCoy said Te'o will undergo tests Monday morning to confirm the initial diagnosis.

Colts: The Colts played most of the game their regular starters on the right side of their offensive line. GuardDenzelle Good (back) was inactive and Reitz (back) left during the first half.

Rivers throws 4 TD pass as Chargers rout Jaguars 38-14

 Philip Rivers couldn't help but saying it in the locker room at halftime.

"It's kind of funny, isn't it, up 21 again."

Unlike a week earlier, the San Diego Chargers didn't turn a three-touchdown lead into a soul-crushing loss. They added on, beating the mistake-prone Jacksonville Jaguars 38-14 Sunday.

Rivers matched his career high with four touchdown passes, including two to Travis Benjamin, and Melvin Gordon ran for one score and had his first 100-yard game

The Chargers (1-1) bounced back from their stunning loss at Kansas City, when they blew a 21-point third-quarter lead and fell 33-27 in overtime.

"It was huge. I'm glad it happened again right away," Rivers said. "It was good for us mentally to get that put to bed that in the sense, `When we're up 21, guys, we're going to win,' instead of that, `Oh, we're hanging on.' "

The Jaguars started 0-2 for the fourth time in five seasons. They crossed midfield only six times and committed three turnovers.

"I think we kind of took ourselves out of rhythm by doing stupid stuff, the turnovers and the penalties," Blake Bortlessaid.

Casey Hayward led the Chargers' defense with two interceptions of Bortles. His first set up a short drive Rivers capped with a 12-yard touchdown pass to Benjamin for a 14-0 lead on the first play of the second quarter.

Rivers threw a 2-yard scoring pass to tight end Antonio Gates for a 21-0 lead midway through the second period. That drive started after a missed 54-yard field goal by Jacksonville's Jason Myers, who went to Mater Dei High in suburban Chula Vista.

His third scoring pass went 44 yards to Tyrell Williams, who bounced off two defenders and broke two tackles just before going into the end zone in the third quarter.

Benjamin, signed as a free agent from Cleveland, caught a 45-yarder late in the third quarter.

Bortles threw TD passes of 4 yards to Marcedes Lewis and 15 to Corey Grant in the fourth quarter.

The Chargers lost a playmaker for the second straight week. Running back Danny Woodhead was helped off the field in the first quarter and taken to the locker room on a cart. The severity of the knee injury wasn't immediately known.

Star receiver Keenan Allen suffered a season-ending knee injury a week earlier.

What could be the Chargers final home opener in San Diego drew only 52,165 fans at 72,000-seat Qualcomm Stadium.

The Jags were coming off a four-point loss to Green Bay.

"I don't know if you're defined by one game," coach Gus Bradley said. "I think the big thing is to see how we'll respond from this."

HUNGRY GORDON: Gordon, a second-year pro, scored on a 3-yard run on the game's opening drive, his first TD at Qualcomm Stadium. Gordon went in standing up, and then right guard D.J. Fluker lifted him off the ground in celebration. He finished with 102 yards on 24 carries.

"It feels good," Gordon said. "I don't get overly excited about anything. It's early. I'm just hungry, man. But I am happy now. I definitely wanted it, so it's even better you get the 100-yard game with a win."

Gordon failed to score a TD during his rookie season, then scored twice at Kansas City.

ANTHEM: Chargers offensive linemen Joe Barksdale and Chris Hairston held up their right fists during the national anthem.

"It's just a solidarity thing," Barksdale said. "Chris has two kids, I have a daughter on the way. You never want to bury your kids. We still stand for the national anthem, we're happy to be in the country. At the same time, things need to change."

There was also a malfunction with a giant American flag as it was being unfurled on the field by Marines and U.S. Navy sailors. The flag appeared to have a big twist in the middle and couldn't be fully opened.

A SAN DIEGO INSTITUTION: Rivers and Gates have hooked up on 78 touchdown passes, the most in NFL history for a quarterback-tight end tandem. Gates has caught 80 TD passes since Rivers became the starter in 2006, but two were thrown by LaDainian Tomlinson on halfback option plays. Gates needs six more scoring catches to match Tony Gonzalez's all-time mark of 111 for a tight end.

WEST COAST WOES: The Jaguars fell to 2-11 on the West Coast and 0-4 in San Diego. The Jags haven't won on the West Coast since 2004 and have been outscored 260-93 during an eight-game losing streak, falling by double digits in seven of those.

INJURIES

Jaguars: LT Kelvin Beachum was taken to a hospital after sustaining a concussion late the third quarter. The stadium was hushed as he was placed on a back board and lifted onto a cart. The team said he was to be kept overnight for observation, returning to Jacksonville Monday. ... Jared Odrick hurt an elbow on the opening drive and returned. ...WRArrelious Benn sustained a cut on Jacksonville's first possession. The team didn't give further information. ... DT Roy Miller hurt his left hand.

Chargers: In addition to Woodhead, SS Jahleel Addae left with an apparent shoulder injury in the fourth period.

Chiefs overcome 17-point deficit, beat Chargers 33-27 in OT

 Alex Smith squirmed out of the pile in the end zone, got to his feet and let out a roar.

All it took was the largest comeback in the 56-year history of the Kansas City Chiefs for the stoic quarterback with the California cool to finally let some emotion show.

Smith threw for 363 yards and two touchdowns to rally his team from a three-touchdown hole, then scored on third-and-goal on the first possession of overtime for a heart-stopping 33-27 victory over the San Diego Chargers in their season opener Sunday.

"Lot of emotion at the end of the game," Smith said with a smile.

The Chiefs trailed 24-3 in the second half before mounting their charge, and it really kicked into gear when Smith hit Jeremy Maclin with a back-shoulder fade to get within 27-17 with 9 minutes to go.

Cairo Santos added a 33-yard field goal a few minutes later. Then, after forcing a three-and-out, Spencer Ware finished a four-play drive with a touchdown plunge to knot the game at 27.

It took Kansas City 10 plays to march 75 yards in overtime. Smith finished it with his plunge from the 2-yard line, keeping the ball rather than pitch when the smallest of creases opened.

By the time Smith reached his feet, the Chiefs had flooded onto the field to celebrate.

"You're going to have games like this that show your character, show your grit," coach Andy Reid said. "I'm proud of the way they handled it. They had confidence in each other."

Philip Rivers threw for 243 yards and a touchdown, and Melvin Gordon scored the first two TDs of his career. But the Chargers were unable to keep any drives going in the fourth quarter, when the Chiefs were charging to their NFL-leading 11th consecutive regular-season victory.

"You just can't let them back in. We've got to close it," Chargers offensive tackle Joe Barksdale said. "Everybody with eyes who saw the game has got to know, we have to close it. It's not acceptable to be up by 24-3 and lose the game. We know that."

The collapse came after San Diego wide receiver Keenan Allen left in the second quarter with what appeared to be a serious knee injury. He already had six catches for 63 yards.

Even without Allen, the retooled Chargers and their improved offensive line managed to build a 21-3 halftime lead. And it looked as if their eight-game skid against AFC West rivals would finally end.

That all changed once the fourth quarter began.

Josh Lambo missed a 54-yard field goal with San Diego leading 27-10, and the momentum swung toward Kansas City. Smith calmly completed six passes and marched his team 56 yards to the end zone, Santos hit his field goal and Ware his touchdown run, and the game was headed to overtime.

The Chiefs carried their newfound momentum all the way to the finish.

BLACK POWER

Chiefs cornerback Marcus Peters held a black-gloved fist aloft during the national anthem in a salute reminiscent of Tommie Smith and John Carlos at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. It was his way of standing beside 49ers quarterbackColin Kaepernick's stance on social injustice.

"I'm supporting Colin and what he's doing, as far as raising awareness with the justice system," said Peters, who grew up in Oakland, California. "Coach said it was OK if I wanted to express my thoughts about what I wanted to do, so I just expressed it."

Peters did link his left arm with his teammates as country singer Trace Adkins performed the anthem. The Chiefs said in a statement they decided to lock arms in a show of solidarity.

MISSING NAMES

The Chiefs played without star pass rusher Justin Houston , who could be out until November as he recovers from ACL surgery in February. The Chargers were without defensive end Joey Bosa, the third pick in April's draft, who remained on the exempt list after a lengthy holdout.

RUNNING IT: Ware finished with 70 yards rushing and had seven catches for 129 yards, giving the Chiefs a big boost without Jamaal Charles. The four-time Pro Bowl running back is still recovering from surgery last season to repair his ACL and was inactive Sunday.

INJURY REPORT

Allen missed the final eight games last season with a lacerated kidney , and now could be out the rest of this season. He never put weight on his right knee after going down Sunday.

"There is speculation about an ACL," coach Mike McCoy said, "but we'll run tests when we get back home."

Chiefs linebacker Sam Barrington left in the second half with a hamstring injury.

Chargers Edge Cowboys 17-7

The Chargers edged the Dallas Cowboys 17-7 in Week 1 of the preseason.  The team got off to a fast start by capitalizing on turnovers.  The first one came in the first quarter when after driving downfield, Cowboys quarterback Brandon Weeden couldn’t handle the snap.  The ball rolled backward 35-yards and was recovered by cornerback Patrick Robinson.  The Bolts’ first team offense took the lead quickly with a six play, 33-yard drive that ended in an eight-yard touchdown by Danny Woodhead up the middle making it 7-0 San Diego.  Dallas responded and knotted the score 7-7 and with 49 seconds left in the first half, the Chargers took the 14-7 lead with a 10-yard score by running backBranden Oliver. 

The third quarter saw a lot of back and forth action between the two teams who traded punts on each drive.  Brad Sorensen entered at quarterback for Kellen Clemens and undrafted rookie running back Dreamius Smith saw action in the backfield.  In the fourth, the Chargers took it to the Dallas 33-yard line whereNick Novak came on and made a 52-yard field goal to make it 17-7 San Diego.  The Cowboys got back into San Diego territory on the ensuing drive but the Chargers defense held strong preventing Dallas from converting a fourth down with just over four minutes left in the game.  After the turnover on downs, running back Jahwan Edwards had a couple of strong runs to burst into Dallas territory, but Sorensen ran the clock out and the Chargers left Qualcomm victorious.

The Chargers are now 1-0 in the preseason and travel to Arizona next Saturday to take on the Cardinals.