The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • 26

1 8 Part IllMonday, October 22, 1984 CofiAnflclcs Slimes i United Press International vince compagnone Los Angeie. Time, chargers' Kellen Winslow catches a pass in front of Raider Odis Ted Watts intercepts a Dan Fouts pass in the end zone with 44 seconds left to smother San Diego's last gasp in 44-37 Raider victory. McKinney. Winslow later injured a knee and is lost for the season. RAIDERS said.

"Because if they won it, we (the offense) might not get a chance to play again." But in the end, there would be no coin flip. Maybe there was no coin flip for a thousand reasons, but the two which are etched into memory are Jesse Bendross' knee and Drew Gissinger's hands. They are both Chargers, and if they won't soon forget this game, and their parts in its final, desperate moments. After wide receiver Bobby Duckworth took Fouts' 18-yard pass and ran through Lester Hayes and Vann McElroy for a 50-yard touchdown with 2:36 to go, capping a four-play, 68-yard drive, Benny Ricardo's point-after-touchdown cut the Raiders lead to seven points, 44-37. The Chargers were back in the hunt, if only their patchwork defense three of their top four defensive backs were out of the starting lineup due to injuries could stop the Raiders, and quickly.

They did, and after Ray Guy's out-of-bounds punt, Fouts and what was left of Air Coryell took possession on the Charger 16 with 2:06 left. Two Pete Holohan receptions moved them to first down at the Charger 33, at which point Fouts threw an innocent-looking swing pass to running back Lionel James, who is listed fifth and last on the Chargers' depth chart. Thirty-one yards and several missed Raider tackles later, James was brought down by McElroy a bit too enthusiastically, the officials ruled. Tacking on the 15-yard personal foul gave the Chargers first down at the Raider 21 with 1:34 left, and the crowd reason to scream loud and long enough to make the concrete bowl a sea of noise. Three plays and zero yards later, it was rookie Bendross' turn in the spotlight.

A seventh round draft choice from Alabama, Bendross hadn't caught a pass since leaving Tuscaloosa until Sunday. But on Air Coryell, even the greenest receiver doesn't have to wait long before a chance to earn his wings. It looked as if Bendross was about to make the most of his. Wide open at the Raider sideline, he caught Fouts' third down pass and turned to run into the end zone with his second NFL reception and first touchdown. But as he turned after the catch, his knee popped up and knocked the ball out of bounds on the Raiders' three.

Barnwell (he also had a 51-yard scoring play in the fourth quarter) with 28 seconds left in the first half the first touchdown pass caught by a Raider wide receiver this season capped a 78-yard drive and enabled the Raiders to start the second half trailing only 20-14. Leading by only 20-17 after Chris Bahr's 33-yard field goal, his second of three on the day, the Chargers came unglued late in the third quarter. Six plays later after Bahr's field goal, defensive end Lyle Alzado, who played easily his best game of the season, sacked Fouts for a nine-yard loss to the Charger 17 and caused a fumble, which Alzado recovered. Four plays later, Wilson froze the Chargers by faking Marcus Allen into the line and hit tight end Derrick Jensen for a one-yard touchdown. Bahr's PAT gave the Raiders a 24-20 lead.

On the ensuing kickoff Barnes blasted return specialist James, who fumbled, Jimmy Smith recovering for the Raiders on the Charger 16. Four plays later, Bahr kicked a 33-yard field goal to make it 27-20. And the Charger horror show continued. On the next play from scrimmage, Fouts' pass was tipped by intended receiver Eric Sievers and intercepted by linebacker Brad Van Pelt, playing in his first game for the Raiders. Van Pelt's nine-yard return to the 20 set up Wilson's 20 -yard scoring pass two plays later to Dokie Williams, replacing an injured Cliff Branch (pulled groin).

Bahr's PAT gave the Raiders a 34-20 lead and 17 points in 130 seconds. In fact, counting Mike Davis' first quarter interception at the Charger 14 setting up the first Raider touchdown the Raider defense and special teams forced turnovers and awarded Wilson and Co. the ball on or inside the Charger 20 four times, which the Raiders converted into 24 points. It almost wasn't enough. "I thought 40 points would win the game," Wilson said.

"Then I wasn't so sure." It was barely. "I think I was too excited to get into the end zone," Bendross said. "I was so excited on catching the ball I guess my knee popped up and popped the ball out of bounds. "I wish it hadn't happened to me." On the next play, when Earnest Jackson cut back and dashed into the end zone for an apparent touchdown, it looked as if Bendross' errant high-stepping would prove to be a mere footnote. Until the official threw his flag.

Raider linebacker Matt Millen didn't see it. "I was too busy screaming at the ground for missing the guy (Jackson)," Millen said. But linebacker Rod Martin saw it. Reserve Charger tackle Drew Gissinger, inserted as a tight end on that goal line play, had been flagged for holding Martin. Holding on a running play.

A cardinal sin. "When I went back to complain," Martin said, "I saw the flag. Then I went up to Bub (Millen's nickname) and said, 'Hey, don't worry. It's It certainly was, and instead of having Ricardo on to kick what would have been the game-tying point, the Chargers had 10 yards marched off and first down at the Raider 14. On the next play, Fouts threw into a sea of jerseys in the end zone and into the hands of nickel back Watts.

"When I saw the ball in my hands," Watts said. "I knew the game was over." It was over, according to Raider right cornerback Mike Haynes, because Watts did such a good job of faking man-to-man coverage as Fouts faded to pass, only to drop back into his zone and Fouts' passing lane. But Raider Mike Davis said the Raiders never should have needed such last-minute heroics. "We had to make some tackles," Davis said. "If we had made some tackles, it wouldn't have been close." Millen: "I just want to thank No.

86 (Bendross) for dropping the ball and Drew Gissinger for his (grabby) hands." The Raiders, who beat San Diego for the fifth straight time, also owed thanks to Charger turnovers. The Chargers had five (the Raiders had three), and they were dandies. Wilson's 45-yard touchdown pass to Malcolm Continued from Page 1 foulups on the Raider three-yard-line with less than 90 seconds to go along with Raider defensive back Ted Watts' end-zone interception with 44 seconds left to preserve a 44-37 Raider victory in a game that had more twists and turns than Dance Fever. But tight end Kellen Winslow, the Chargers' star of stars, won't be dancing for quite some time. For him, the crudest twist came with 3:30 left, on the first play of what proved to be the Chargers' final touchdown drive.

It came when Winslow, who entered the game as the National Football League's leading receiver he was on a pace to break Charley Hennigan's one-season record of 104 caught a 12-yard Dan Fouts pass, his eighth of the game and 55th of the season. Then he caught a hurtling 235-pound projecticle Raider linebacker Jeff Barnes on his right knee. Winslow was carted off the field with torn ligaments. He was operated on Sunday night. His 1984 season is over.

And so, possibly, are the Chargers' playoff hopes. With a 4-4 record, each of the losses at the hands of AFC West opponents, they trail the first-place Raiders and Denver Broncos who both have 7-1 records and a return match at the Coliseum Sunday as well as the Seattle Seahawks (6-2). Before the game, Fouts (24 of 45 for 410 yards, three touchdowns, three interceptions) admitted that a loss could put "our season in jeopardy." And yet, with his two big guns, Winslow and wide receiver Wes Chandler (who missed the second half with a bruised knee) both sidelined, he came within a hair of forcing the game into overtime. Standing on the sideline, Wilson, who was often brilliant Sunday 24 of 37 for 332 yards, five touchdowns, one interception was already thinking about it. "I was just hoping we'd win the coin flip," Wilson CHARGERS gained 98 yards, seemingly boosted his output to 101 yards.

He started left, cut back inside and picked up those three yards Bendross had left on the ground. Except a flag was also lying on the ground. Gissinger had thrown a shoe, and he was hastily replacing it for an extra point attempt which would never come. Sievers saw the flag, but did not know who was being penalized. Gissinger wears 75 and Sievers wears 85, and the official's call on the loudspeaker could not be heard on the field.

"It was on Drew," Sievers said. "If they called it on me, it was a bad call." "The official said 85," said Gissinger. As it turned out, the official did say 85. In that sense, it was on Sievers but Martin said Gissinger was the culprit. However, Martin would well have been confused.

Both Sievers and Gissinger blocked him on the play. "Eric hit Martin," Gissinger said. "Then I got on him and Eric left him to hit the support back coming up. I still don't know where they called the holding." Gissinger, normally a tackle, was playing tight end on the left side. The Chargers have frequently used him as a third tight end on short yardage situations.

In this case, they were short on tight ends as well as yardage. Kellen Winslow had been lost for the season with a knee injury late in the fourth period and Pete Holohan had sprained an ankle. Sievers, the only healthy tight end, came in motion from right to left behind quarterback Fouts. "I was suppose to hit the end and then go to the corner," Sievers said. "You can write what you want, but I wasn't holding.

If I hold, I'll take the blame. If they said I'm the guy, I'm the goat. I'll live with it. We can't look at the films tomorrow and make it come out any different." "I have no idea what happened," Gissinger said, "but it's a shame to have it end that way. It's a bitter, bitter loss." The Chargers, through the years, seem to have endured more than their share of bitter, bitter losses to the Raiders.

"The Raiders seem to be the luckiest team," said Bendross. "Freak things seem to happen with them." Bendross, a mere rookie, can hardly understand and appreciate the depths of rivalry and bitterness which exist between the two organizations. One of the more memorable encounters happened in 1978 and came to be known as The Immaculate Deception game. Kenny Stabler intentionally fumbled he admitted as much and the ball was kicked forward until Dave Casper recovered it in the end zone for the winning touchdown. "No kidding," Bendross said.

"I heard about that game, and I knew the Raiders won it But I didn't realize the Chargers lost it" Get used to it, Jesse. That is the way things go when the Chargers and Raiders meet Continued from Page 1 third period. Gill Byrd was beaten twice on long scoring passes from Marc Wilson to Malcolm Barnwell. There were plenty of Chargers who felt like crawling into that hole before Jesse Bendross fumbled the ball en route to the end zone. "I had the ball in my right hand," Bendross said.

"I brought my arm down and the ball hit my leg and popped forward. It was a freak accident. I thought I'd die out there." It was particularly frustrating for Bendross, because it was only the second catch for the 22-year-old rookie from Alabama. He had made his first NFL catch back in the first quarter, a 29-yard play which helped set up the game's first touchdown. As he neared the goal line on that fateful fourth period play, the touchdown would be his and it would tie the game if Benny Ricardo kicked the extra point, which he could not do after the Chargers' second touchdown.

"I was thinking touchdown," Bendross said. "I think 36 (Mike Davis) was coming. He had an angle and it would have been close, but I'd like to have held it and seen the outcome." On the next play, the Chargers would have scored if someone whomever it might have been did not hold. Jackson, a bull of a back who I JJ PAT DOWNS Lot Angela Time Raiders' Malcolm Barnwell (80) and Chargers' Billy Ray Smith battle for pass that falls incomplete..