NFL

Chiefs stay in chase, knock San Diego out

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Drawing dirty looks in the San Diego locker room was easy after Larry Johnson and the Chiefs snuffed out the Chargers' playoff hopes.

Just asking the mistake-prone visitors if they were flat in the wake of their huge victory at Indianapolis did the trick.

"We weren't," coach Marty Schottenheimer said in a level voice. "We were outplayed."

Indeed. The Chiefs ran their December home winning streak to 18 and kept their playoff hopes alive with a dominating victory a week after they lost at the New York Giants in one of their poorest games of the year.

Johnson had his eighth straight 100-yard rushing game, constantly digging his heels into the wet, slippery turf for extra yardage, dragging tacklers with him.

The third-year pro had 131 tough yards and two touchdowns against a defense that came in No. 1 in the league against the run and had not allowed a 100-yard rusher in 16 straight games.

He scored on a 4-yard dash and a tackle-busting 28-yard catch-and-run down the sideline. Since he became the starter Nov. 1 after Priest Holmes went on injured reserve, Johnson has a league-leading 1,150 yards on the ground.

For the Chiefs to make the postseason, they must beat Cincinnati on Jan. 1, Denver must beat the Chargers and Detroit upset the Steelers in Pittsburgh on Saturday.

"Detroit needs to go sign Barry Sanders for just one more week," Chiefs left tackle Willie Roaf said. "It's going to be tough."

Anything short of the postseason is bound to be a big letdown for a team that squandered its chances with road losses to Dallas and the Giants the previous two weeks.

NOTABLE: Johnson has 17 touchdowns rushing this season, the third-highest total in team history.

[Last modified December 24, 2005, 23:43:13]