AFC Championship Game Preview

San Diego Chargers (13-5) vs. New England Patriots (17-0)
Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts
Sunday, 12 p.m., CBS


Coaches' playoff records:
Norv Turner, San Diego, 3-1 Bill Belichick, New England, 14-3

Last meeting:
September 16, 2007 at Foxborough, Massachusetts.
In the immediate aftermath of "Spygate," the fired-up Patriots rolled to a 24-point halftime lead en route to a 38-14 victory over the Chargers. Tom Brady threw three touchdown passes - two to Randy Moss - and linebacker Adalius Thompson returned an interception for a touchdown as New England bolted to a 24-0 lead. Brady threw for 279 yards and Moss and Wes Welker had eight receptions apiece. Laurence Maroney added 77 yards on 15 carries. The Chargers, who lost to the Patriots, 24-21, as the No. 1 seed in the divisional playoffs in 2006, never posed a threat as running back LaDainian Tomlinson was limited to just 43 yards on 18 carries. New England intercepted Philip Rivers twice and sacked him three times.


San Diego offense against New England defense ---------------------------------------------
Key Matchups:
RBs LaDainian Tomlinson vs. NFL's 10th-ranked run defense
QB Philip Rivers vs. NFL's 6th-ranked pass defense
WR Chris Chambers vs. CB Asante Samuel
TE Antonio Gates vs. SS Rodney Harrison
RT Jeromey Clary vs. LB Mike Vrabel
Big ifs abound for the Chargers. Tomlinson and Rivers suffered knee injuries in Sunday's 28-24 victory over the Indianapolis Colts and both are listed as questionable. In addition, All-Pro tight end Antonio Gates is suffering from a dislocated toe that limited him to two catches for 28 yards against the Colts. While the Chargers received spectacular production from backup running backs Michael Turner and Darren Sproles, and reserve quarterback Billy Volek led the game-winning drive, it might be asking too much of them to provide similar results and match the firepower of the high-scoring Patriots. Rivers has put together superb back-to-back games and has been helped by the emergence of wide receiver Vincent Jackson opposite Chris Chambers. Jackson has 12 receptions for 207 yards and two TDs in the two postseason wins.


New England offense against San Diego defense ----------------------------------------------
Key Matchups:
QB Tom Brady vs. NFL's 14th-ranked pass defense
RB Laurence Maroney vs. NFL's 16th-ranked run defense
WR Randy Moss vs. CB Antonio Cromartie
WR Wes Welker vs. FS Marlon McCree
LT Matt Light vs. LB
Shawne Merriman Brady carved up the San Diego defense in the first meeting, finishing 25-of-31, but Cromartie was inactive in that contest. The second-year cornerback has 11 interceptions in his last 16 games and likely will draw the task of covering Moss, who served primarily as a decoy in New England's 31-20 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars. With attention focused on Moss last weekend, Welker had nine receptions and a touchdown - the ninth time this season he has had at least eight catches in a game. Tight end Ben Watson also had a pair of scoring passes against the Jaguars. Running back Laurence Maroney continued his last-season resurgence, rushing for 122 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries. It was the third 100-yard game in the last four for Maroney, who also has five rushing TDs in his last four games.


How they got here -----------------
San Diego 17, Tennessee 6: Trailing at halftime, 6-0, the Chargers scored 17 straight points as Rivers threw for 292 yards, including a 25-yard touchdown pass to Jackson.

San Diego 28, Indianapolis 24: Despite injuries to Tomlinson, Rivers and Gates, backup QB Billy Volek led the game-winning drive in the fourth quarter to eliminate the defending Super Bowl champs.

New England 31, Jacksonville 20: Brady threw a pair of third-quarter TD passes as the Patriots broke away from a 14-14 halftime tie. New England limited the Jaguars to two second-half field goals.


Three keys to the game ----------------------
1) Perfect solution: San Diego will need to muster pressure on Brady, who had the highest completion percentage (92.9) in postseason history against the Jaguars as he finished 26-of-28 for 262 yards and three TDs.

2) Walking wounded: San Diego cannot afford to lose one of its three marquee players, much less two. Bizarre as it sounds, Rivers may be more vital than Tomlinson given the Pats' recent defensive struggles.

3) Familiarity breeds contempt: These two teams do not like each other, stemming from the Patriots dancing on the Chargers' turf following a 24-21 playoff victory last season.