Wild Card Round: Indianapolis Colts at San Diego Chargers (Jack Murphy Stadium), the bracket opens here. Kickoff: Sun December 31, 1995 at 4:00pm. Winner advances to the divisional round. Loser starts the offseason early.[1][2]
Wild card weekend is the most chaotic football the calendar produces. Indianapolis Colts at San Diego Chargers at Jack Murphy Stadium is the kind of game that decides whether a season was a long buildup or a quick exit. These are the games where the second-tier playoff teams have to prove they belong. Most don't. The few who do define the rest of January.
The bracket has narrowed to the teams that survived the regular season. Indianapolis Colts and San Diego Chargers are two of them; the rest of the league is in scouting mode for the offseason. What happens in Jack Murphy Stadium shifts the rest of the tree: a road favorite winning rearranges seeding expectations; a home upset shows the bracket math underweights heart.
Indianapolis Colts versus San Diego Chargers in the Wild Card Round. The teams who reach this round have already proven they survive a long schedule; the stats that matter most now are the ones that compress: scoring differential, red-zone efficiency, turnover margin. At this stage of the year, the simple math is that defenses tighten and the team that protects the ball wins more often than the team that scores the most. Whichever side of Indianapolis Colts-San Diego Chargers cleans up the careless plays first usually walks out with the result. Conservative-game expectations should not surprise the reader; both staffs know exactly what worked all season and will lean hard on what travels. The early answer is the kicking game, where any swing of field position compounds.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 11-5 | L1 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 7-9 | W1 |
| Houston Oilers | 7-9 | W2 |
| Cleveland Browns | 5-11 | L1 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 4-12 | W1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Bills | 10-6 | L1 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 9-7 | W1 |
| Miami Dolphins | 9-7 | W1 |
| New England Patriots | 6-10 | L2 |
| New York Jets | 3-13 | L4 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Kansas City Chiefs | 13-3 | W2 |
| San Diego Chargers | 9-7 | W5 |
| Denver Broncos | 8-8 | W1 |
| Oakland Raiders | 8-8 | L6 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 8-8 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco 49ers | 11-5 | L1 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 9-7 | W1 |
| Carolina Panthers | 7-9 | L1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 7-9 | W1 |
| St. Louis Rams | 7-9 | L3 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Green Bay Packers | 11-5 | W2 |
| Detroit Lions | 10-6 | W7 |
| Chicago Bears | 9-7 | W2 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 8-8 | L2 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 7-9 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Dallas Cowboys | 12-4 | W2 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 10-6 | L1 |
| Washington Redskins | 6-10 | W2 |
| New York Giants | 5-11 | L2 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 4-12 | -- |
Indianapolis Colts None, San Diego Chargers None
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indianapolis Colts | 0 | 14 | 7 | 14 | 014213535 |
| San Diego Chargers | 3 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 310172020 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chargers | John Carney 54 yard field goal | 0-3 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Colts | Ken Dilger 2 yard pass from Jim Harbaugh ( Cary Blanchard kick) | 7-3 |
| Chargers | Alfred Pupunu 6 yard pass from Stan Humphries ( John Carney kick) | 7-10 |
| Colts | Zack Crockett 33 yard rush ( Cary Blanchard kick) | 14-10 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chargers | Shawn Jefferson 11 yard pass from Stan Humphries ( John Carney kick) | 14-17 |
| Colts | Sean Dawkins 42 yard pass from Jim Harbaugh ( Cary Blanchard kick) | 21-17 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chargers | John Carney 30 yard field goal | 21-20 |
| Colts | Zack Crockett 66 yard rush ( Cary Blanchard kick) | 28-20 |
| Colts | Jim Harbaugh 3 yard rush ( Cary Blanchard kick) | 35-20 |
Indianapolis Colts defeated San Diego Chargers 35-20 at Jack Murphy Stadium in the Wild Card Round. The final scoring play was Colts: Jim Harbaugh 3 yard rush ( Cary Blanchard kick). Top line of the day: Stan Humphries: 292 pass yards on 23-of-47, 2 TD, 4 INT. Indianapolis Colts advance to the divisional round.[1][2]
Indianapolis Colts walked out of Jack Murphy Stadium as the team that survived a Wild Card Round San Diego Chargers will replay in its head for the entire offseason. The scoreboard says 35-20. The final scoring play came from Colts: Jim Harbaugh 3 yard rush ( Cary Blanchard kick). Whether it was the game-decider or just the period at the end of the sentence depends on what the camera caught earlier. Indianapolis Colts advance to the divisional round.
Indianapolis Colts 35, San Diego Chargers 20. Round: Wild Card Round. Attendance: 61182. Q1: 1 scoring play. Q2: 3 scoring plays. Q3: 2 scoring plays. Q4: 3 scoring plays. Top performers:
- Stan Humphries: 292 pass yards on 23-of-47, 2 TD, 4 INT
- Zack Crockett: 147 rush yards on 13 carries
- Ronnie Harmon: 10 catches for 133 yards
Wild Card Round, played at Jack Murphy Stadium. Final: Indianapolis Colts 35, San Diego Chargers 20, with Indianapolis Colts taking the result by 15. **First quarter**
- Chargers: John Carney 54 yard field goal
Second quarter
- Colts: Ken Dilger 2 yard pass from Jim Harbaugh ( Cary Blanchard kick)
- Chargers: Alfred Pupunu 6 yard pass from Stan Humphries ( John Carney kick)
- Colts: Zack Crockett 33 yard rush ( Cary Blanchard kick)
Third quarter
- Chargers: Shawn Jefferson 11 yard pass from Stan Humphries ( John Carney kick)
- Colts: Sean Dawkins 42 yard pass from Jim Harbaugh ( Cary Blanchard kick)
Fourth quarter
- Chargers: John Carney 30 yard field goal
- Colts: Zack Crockett 66 yard rush ( Cary Blanchard kick)
- Colts: Jim Harbaugh 3 yard rush ( Cary Blanchard kick)
Top performers
- Stan Humphries: 292 pass yards on 23-of-47, 2 TD, 4 INT
- Zack Crockett: 147 rush yards on 13 carries
- Ronnie Harmon: 10 catches for 133 yards
| Colts | Chargers | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 19 | 27 |
| Total Yards | 333 | 429 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 4 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 16/27 | 23/47 |
| Pass yards | 175 | 292 |
| Pass TD | 2 | 2 |
| Interceptions | 1 | 4 |
| Sacks taken | 2 | 1 |
| Sack yards lost | 20 | 8 |
| Net pass yards | 155 | 284 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 29 | 32 |
| Rush yards | 178 | 145 |
| Rush TD | 3 | 0 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 2 | 0 |
| Fumbles lost | 0 | 0 |
| Penalties | 4 | 4 |
| Penalty yards | 30 | 24 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IND | |||||
| Jim Harbaugh | 16/27 | 175 | 2 | 1 | |
| SDG | |||||
| Stan Humphries | 23/47 | 292 | 2 | 4 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IND | ||||
| Zack Crockett | 13 | 147 | 2 | 66 |
| Marshall Faulk | 1 | 16 | 0 | 16 |
| Jim Harbaugh | 5 | 10 | 1 | 7 |
| Lamont Warren | 10 | 5 | 0 | 4 |
| SDG | ||||
| Aaron Hayden | 18 | 80 | 0 | 15 |
| Stan Humphries | 4 | 32 | 0 | 17 |
| Terrell Fletcher | 3 | 23 | 0 | 20 |
| Natrone Means | 6 | 11 | 0 | 5 |
| Ronnie Harmon | 1 | -1 | 0 | -1 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IND | ||||
| Floyd Turner | 5 | 64 | 0 | 21 |
| Sean Dawkins | 2 | 49 | 1 | 42 |
| Lamont Warren | 4 | 45 | 0 | 17 |
| Zack Crockett | 2 | 10 | 0 | 6 |
| Ken Dilger | 2 | 9 | 1 | 7 |
| Ronald Humphrey | 1 | -2 | 0 | -2 |
| SDG | ||||
| Ronnie Harmon | 10 | 133 | 0 | 24 |
| Terrell Fletcher | 2 | 42 | 0 | 26 |
| Tony Martin | 3 | 39 | 0 | 18 |
| Shawn Jefferson | 3 | 33 | 1 | 12 |
| Alfred Pupunu | 3 | 26 | 1 | 13 |
| Mark Seay | 2 | 19 | 0 | 11 |
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Find the thread Start the threadCanonical title: [Rewatch Party] 1995 Wild Card Round - Indianapolis Colts at San Diego Chargers - Game Thread
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