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Charger chatter

Comments from Chargers coach Marty Schottenheimer and Chargers players:

Marty Schottenheimer
“Our guys played their hearts out today. We’re obviously very, very disappointed in the outcome of this football game, but this group had a hell of a year. And not withstanding the disappointment and frustration of the events of this day, I’ll choose to look at this team in a very positive light, because the men that are in that locker room laid it down every single time they were asked to and at the end of this situation, we ran out of time, that’s what happened. We ran out of time. Now, from a practical standpoint, we turned the ball over four times and you can’t do that and expect to win.”

On penalties taken by his team
“The personal foul penalties were very disappointing , because what you end up doing there is put your own personal feelings about a matter ahead of the football team.”

Safety Marlon McCree
On his interception that he fumbled
“At first I was trying to score. I saw there was an o-lineman in front of me, and I knew if I could make him miss there was a lot of room in front of me. Before I had a chance to do that, Troy Brown stripped the ball from me. He made a great play, and I was trying to make a big play as well. I do not regret my interception. I will never try and just go down on the ball. I want to score.”

Outside linebacker Shawne Merriman
On the game
“It was big plays they made and obviously it probably would have been the turn of the game if we wouldn’t have turned the ball back over. But things like that happen and come up in the game and you can’t make mistakes in the game. That’s all the way around for 60 minutes. … We played them tough the entire game.”

Linebacker Randall Godfrey
On the game
“We were the best team in the league. It’s a tough feeling. I hope these guys remember this feeling. It’s hard in this league. You work so hard and go 14-2 and not finish what you’re supposed to do. We were supposed to win the Super Bowl this year and they just made the plays that we didn’t. It’s a terrible way to go out.”

Quarterback Philip Rivers
On the Patriots celebrating after the game
“It was disappointing in the way they handled winning. I mean, for as much as everybody said they expect them to win, they didn’t act like it, but that’s neither here or there. They’re playing next week and we’re not. I think what got L.T. and I right there was a little bit of taunting. It was a little finger-pointing and I don’t know where it came from. Pointing to the scoreboard, doing the “Lights Out” dance, stomping on the helmets, all that. I don’t want to blow it up, we’ve all been there. I don’t want to blow it out of proportion.”

Running back LaDainian Tomlinson
On the game plan
“We kind of wanted to stay balanced. They really didn’t stop anything we did. It wasn’t a factor I think in anything they did. They didn’t stop us. We moved the ball up and down the field. They did a good job in the red zone at times, and even when we got good field position, they buckled down in certain situations to stop us. I think their whole mindset was in certain situations to come up with a stop. They did that.”