OAKLAND – The Chargers got an interception from a 309-pound defensive end wearing “two pounds of tape” on his hands, and they had an undrafted linebacker who spent the first 10 weeks of the season on the practice squad cause and recover a fumble in the end zone.

And no one should have been surprised.

It was that kind of season for San Diego's defense and special teams, which forced turnovers at a rate unseen around the franchise since the AFL and NFL operated separately.

With four more takeaways in yesterday's regular season-ending 30-17 victory over Oakland at McAfee Coliseum, the Chargers finished with a hat trick of sorts – they led the NFL in interceptions (30), total takeaways (48) and giveaway-takeaway margin (plus-24). Not since the 1970 merger had the Chargers led the league in any of those categories. They also had the league's individual interception leader (Antonio Cromartie, 10) for the first time.

“That's huge because it doesn't matter how much a team is moving the ball if they can't score because of turnovers,” said linebacker Shaun Phillips, who had two interceptions and forced three fumbles this season. “Turnovers demoralize a team. I found that out as a little kid, whether it's basketball or football, it demoralizes a team.”

Especially when either the defense scores a touchdown – as it did yesterday when Jyles Tucker stripped the ball from Raiders rookie quarterback JaMarcus Russell and fell on it in the end zone – or the offense takes the ball and produces points. By scoring 17 points off turnovers yesterday, including Tucker's TD, the Chargers finished with 128 points in that category, just two fewer than the NFL leader (Arizona).

San Diego's interception and takeaway totals were the highest in each category since the merger. Green Bay and Jacksonville were the only teams not to commit a turnover against the Chargers, who had at least two in every other game and at least four in six games. Ten different players had at least one interception. Including special teams plays, 11 different players forced at least one fumble and 14 different players recovered at least one loose ball.

“Taking the ball away is contagious, just like turning the ball over is contagious,” Phillips said. “We feed off that. Once we get to rolling and starting to see we can create turnovers, we want more, we want more, we want more.

“I think the same thing happened to us last year with sacks (when they led the league with 61). That's how football is. Certain things are contagious, just like winning.

“We've won six in a row for a reason. We just started building momentum and building confidence. It just becomes contagious.”

That was certainly the case with Tucker, who had a half-sack in his first five NFL games but came up with three yesterday, forcing fumbles on two. He scored his first TD since his freshman year at Wake Forest (when he stripped now-teammate Charlie Whitehurst and returned it 12 yards). He credited Phillips and Shawne Merriman for giving him tips.

“When he (Russell) set up I just lunged for it and tried to rake the ball out,” Tucker said. “I didn't know if I got it, but then I saw the offensive lineman going to get the ball. When he missed it, my eyes lit up so I went over there and got it.”

The Chargers' lone interception yesterday came on their first defensive play, with defensive end Igor Olshansky reading a screen pass and then tipping the ball to himself with his left hand for his first career pick.

“If they're going to throw it my way, then I should make that play – even though I have two pounds of tape on my hands,” Olshansky said. “The hand-eye coordination's there; I mean, I'm a basketball player. Catching the ball's not that hard for me. I have decent hands.”

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Jay Posner: (619) 293-1834; jay.posner@uniontrib.com