Tomlinson jumps past 49ers

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On one of his four TDs for the Chargers, he high-jumped over the goal pile.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Nothing LaDainian Tomlinson does on the ground really impresses the San Diego Chargers at this point. For that, the running back must take to the air.

Tomlinson seemed to be trying to jump out of Monster Park while hurdling the goal line on one of his four touchdown runs Sunday — and his elevation was the Chargers' inspiration.

Tomlinson set a franchise record while seemingly spending most of the afternoon in the end zone, and Philip Rivers passed for a career-high 334 yards and two more scores in San Diego's 48-19 victory over San Francisco.

Tomlinson got his third score 33 seconds before halftime, capping San Diego's 35-point first half and essentially finishing off the 49ers (2-4) with an astonishingly high leap over the goal-line pile.

"It was pretty awesome," said Rivers, who went 29-of-39 as the Chargers rolled to their first 4-1 start since 2002. "Little things like that ... it wasn't the touchdown necessarily, but seeing him do that sparks those guys on the sidelines."

"It was the highest vertical leap I have ever seen a guy take," coach Marty Schottenheimer said. "It was like he almost cleared everybody who was in front of him, blocking and defending. That was pretty impressive stuff, but those things with L.T. become a bit commonplace."

Surpasses Alworth's record

Tomlinson rushed for just 71 yards, but surpassed Lance Alworth's Chargers record with his 84th career touchdown in the first quarter. He added three more on similarly short runs, each punctuated with a ball flip and a wave.

Tomlinson thought nothing of his safety before the jump.

"I think my lineman was standing up, so I knew I had to get over him," Tomlinson said. "I recall seeing Walter Payton do that, and even Emmitt Smith — guys I look up to."

Antonio Gates and Vincent Jackson caught scoring passes, and Rivers was practically perfect. With a poise beyond his five career starts, he easily picked apart a defense that already has allowed 194 points this season.

San Diego scored 35 first-half points against the 49ers before finishing the club's highest-scoring performance since 1986, matching a 48-point game against Buffalo last season.

Schottenheimer didn't play it safe for a change, either: Rivers and Tomlinson stayed in the game with a 22-point lead in the final minutes, finally adding L.T.'s last TD with 4:20 to play.

And San Diego seemed to need plenty of points for a change: In the 49ers' fourth home game in five weeks, Alex Smith kept one of the NFL's top defenses on its heels with a strong first half before fading late.

Monday, October 16, 2006