Colts vs. Chargers 2013 game recap: San Diego knocks off Indianapolis, 19-9

The matchup of Andrew Luck vs. Philip Rivers turned into a defensive battle with San Diego coming out on top.

By Mark Sandritter Oct 14, 2013, 11:39pm EDT

The San Diego Chargers improved to 3-3 on the season with an impressive 19-9 win against the Indianapolis Colts.

Both teams entered the game with high-powered offenses, but the defenses stole the show on Monday. Indianapolis was fourth in the NFL, scoring 27.8 points per game. The Colts had scored at least 34 points in their last two games before being held to three field goals by the Chargers' defense.

Indianapolis struck first with a field goal on its first offensive possession, but San Diego took control of the game, dominating time of possession and keeping the Colts' offense on the sideline. Philip Rivers led a 12-play touchdown drive early in the second quarter to put San Diego up 7-3. The teams traded field goals near the end of the half with the Chargers going into halftime up 10-6.

The Chargers continued to put long drives together, although San Diego was unable to get into the endzone. The Chargers went up 13-6 after an 11-play drive. San Diego drove 15 plays early in the fourth quarter, adding their third field goal of the game to take a 10-point lead. The Colts responded with a field goal of their own, cutting San Diego's lead to 16-9.

Despite dominating the ball for much of the game, San Diego was unable to mount a drive when it got the ball back, giving the ball back to the Colts with plenty of time. Andrew Luck has already led nine fourth-quarter comebacks in his NFL career, but the Colts were unable to move the ball, thanks in part to a key drop by Trent Richardson.

Indianapolis stopped Antonio Gates on a third-and-2, but Nick Novak drilled a 50-yard field goal to put San Diego up 19-9 and make it a two-score game with 1:55 to play. Luck attempted to move the Colts down the field quickly, but his pass was tipped and intercepted by Derek Cox to seal the game.

Although the Chargers won the game, Rivers' streak of games with at least 400 yards passing was snapped. Rivers had topped 400 yards in two straight games and would have become the first player in NFL history to do it three straight games. He finished with 237 passing yards.

Fantasy studs and duds

Allen was the offensive star of the game, catching nine passes for 107 yards and a touchdown. Once again, Richardson wasn't able to get much going, finishing with 40 rushing yards on 10 carries.

Injury report

Jerrell Freeman left the game for Indianapolis with a concussion and did not return. Eddie Royal and Ryan Mathews both came off the field for San Diego, but returned to the game.