HOUSTON _ The Chargers move the football better than most NFL teams, and they take the ball away more often than most NFL teams.
If you didn't know better, you'd think those twin engines would've powered San Diego to a winning record going into the Week 12 game Sunday at Houston.
Not taking advantage of opportunities has almost certainly cost the Bolts a shot at winning the AFC West, but moving and stealing the ball still was good enough to beat the AFC South-leading Texans, 21-13, on Sunday.
Philip Rivers, who rebounded from one of his worst career showings, directed three touchdown drives of over 60 yards.
On defense, where Joey Bosa, Dwight Lowery, and Casey Hayward led the charge, the Chargers created four takeaways.
So, the performance served as a reminder: the Bolts (5-6) are still dangerous, as the Texans (6-5) can attest after losing for the first time in their six home games this season.
And once again, the Chargers showed they can be as dangerous to themselves as they are to the opponent, especially when their erratic special teams are involved.
The special units turned in a solid first quarter, getting good punts from Drew Kaser and good coverage _ but as the game unfolded, there was a missed 54-yard field goal from Josh Lambo, poor punts from Kaser and a 15-yard penalty.
Making things too interesting, the Bolts, for the second time this season, allowed a successful onside kick, so Houston had two Hail Mary chances to pull to 21-20, pending the one-point kick or two-point try.
Both heaves failed (6-foot-4 safety Dexter McCoil picked off the second one), sending the Bolts toward San Diego with their fourth victory in the past six games.
The Chargers will be favored on betting lines in their next game, at home Sunday against the Tampa Bay Bucs. Having topped last year's meager total of four wins, the Chargers now will try to return to .500 for the first time since they beat Jacksonville in Week 2.
