SAN DIEGO (AP) -LaDainian Tomlinson is playing so well that even the archrival Oakland Raiders are saying nice things about him.
Maybe the guys in silver and black have become desensitized after losing so much to the AFC West-leading Chargers, who will be going for their seventh straight win against last-place Oakland on Sunday at Qualcomm Stadium. That's never been done by the Chargers (8-2) in a series that dates to the AFL's birth in 1960.
Or maybe they just can't help but be impressed by Tomlinson's MVP-like numbers.
``I think all of the debate's been taken out with his performance over the last month and a half,'' Raiders defensive tackle Warren Sapp said. ``He's always been special, but when you're putting up those kind of touchdown numbers, it just defines you. He's done it like no other.''
Tomlinson had another remarkable performance last Sunday night, scoring four more touchdowns to help the Chargers rally from a 17-point deficit to win 35-27 at Denver in a showdown for the division lead.
That gave him an NFL-record 19 touchdowns in six games and a Chargers single-season record of 22. He needs seven more in the last six games to break the NFL record of 28 set by Shaun Alexander during his MVP season of 2005.
That's what impresses Sapp, more so than Tomlinson's 1,037 yards rushing, good for third in the NFL, and his league-best 1,488 yards from scrimmage.
``Touchdowns. Points. That's what it's all about,'' Sapp said. ``I've been on defenses where they've said, 'just bend, bend, bend and then give them the field goal.' When you're talking about three to seven points, that's a big difference when you're talking about the outcome of a ballgame. Touchdowns really mean a lot.''
As much as Tomlinson has been finding the end zone, the Chargers have needed every one of his touchdowns during the last two weeks, as well as Philip Rivers' five touchdown passes.
Two weeks ago, San Diego twice trailed by 21 points at Cincinnati before scoring 42 points in the second half to win 49-41. At Denver, the Chargers were down 24-7 in the third quarter before coming back.
The Raiders (2-8) have played better lately, particularly on defense. They led the Kansas City Chiefs late in last weekend's game before losing 17-13.
Now it's their turn to try to stop Tomlinson, who rushed for 131 yards and one touchdown in a season-opening 27-0 win at Oakland.
``If you could tackle him to where he ain't breaking two to three tackles, then you'll be fine,'' Sapp said. ``But once he's in your secondary and he's bobbing and weaving and you miss him, it's going to be trouble.''
Tomlinson smiled when he heard Sapp's comments.
``I'm glad Warren likes me, for one,'' Tomlinson said. ``If he didn't like me, then I don't think he'd say good things about me. That guy, he's the ultimate competitor. He wants to win as bad as anybody out there.''
Tomlinson usually plays well against the Raiders, having gained 1,345 yards with 10 touchdowns in 11 career games. Oakland has done a good job against him in San Diego, though, holding him under 100 yards in four of five games. The fifth game was a big one, though, with Tomlinson going off for a career-high 243 yards on Dec. 28, 2003.
``I can't tell you why,'' Tomlinson said. ``I've just been lucky so far.''
Chargers center Nick Hardwick knows why.
``Probably because he runs downhill. L.T. does well against everybody, for the most part,'' Hardwick said. ``He's just a downhill runner. I think that's what you have to be when it comes to these guys. The holes always show quick, close up quick. He's got that gear to just bust right through.''
Sapp contrasted Tomlinson's style with Barry Sanders' brilliant cutback style.
``With Barry you knew he'd give you five or six minus plays,'' Sapp said. ``He'd give them to you because he was just going to try to make that unbelievable, shake down 12 people, go the other way twice, going one way and all of that.
``This guy here is more of a downhill - understand the importance of not having that minus-5, minus-4 - and then hitting you with 60. He's 2, 3, 5, 12, 20, 30, you know, like that. He's going downhill and going in the right direction. He's not so much of a behind-the-line-of-scrimmage, shake-you-down kind of guy. He's shaking you in the hole when he's on the way for 20.''
Tomlinson said he hasn't given much thought to his place in NFL history. He's scored 102 touchdowns in 89 games, four fewer games than it took Hall of Famer Jim Brown and Emmitt Smith to score 100 TDs.
``Right now it hasn't set in on what it means because it's fresh. I'm caught up in the moment. It's like I'm going along for the ride,'' Tomlinson said.
Rivers figures he'll throw more than 11 passes against the Raiders. That's all he threw in the season-opener, his first career start.
``Certainly I would expect to,'' Rivers said. ``There's no need to beat L.T. up with 40 carries this week.''
Chargers coach Marty Schottenheimer will look to continue his dominance of the Raiders, as well as wrapping up his 200th career win. He's gotten 26 of those wins against the Raiders, with just seven losses.
This will be the final game of outside linebacker Shawne Merriman's four-game suspension for a positive steroid test. The Chargers also are likely to be without defensive end Luis Castillo (ankle) for the third straight game.
Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
