BUFFALO, New York (Ticker) -- Doug Flutie will have at least a few more games to work his magic.
After Flutie put his team in position, Steve Christie kicked a 46-yard field goal with 6:34 remaining in overtime, lifting the Buffalo Bills to a 27-24 victory over the winless San Diego Chargers.
Flutie replaced starting quarterback Rob Johnson, who left after landing on his right shoulder following a hit by Chargers defensive end Neil Smith on the Bills' first possession of overtime. After the game it was revealed Johnson will be sidelined two to four weeks with the injury.
After stopping the Bills, San Diego committed a costly miscue on its second possession of the extra period when Jim Harbaugh was intercepted by safety Henry Jones on the Buffalo 41.
"It came down to who was going to make the big play," Jones said. "Defensively it was one of those days. We gave up a couple of big plays but played solid."
It did not take Flutie long to march the Bills to the winning points. On first down, he found Peerless Price with a nine-yard pass and followed with a 21-yard strike down the left sideline to Eric Moulds that moved the Bills to the San Diego 25.
Three plays later, Christie booted home the winning points as Buffalo (3-3) avoided its first four-game losing streak since the 1985 season.
"I don't want to make it a habit but it's enjoyable," said Christie about his winning kick. "As long as we win, if we get in a situation where I have a chance to win it, I'll do my best."
Last season, Flutie lost his starting job to Johnson after starting the first 15 games. Johnson started the season finale against Indianapolis before he was surprisingly named as the starter against Tennessee in the playoffs.
Before leaving with his injury, Johnson enjoyed a career game by completing 29-of-47 pases for 321 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
Harbaugh also had a big afternoon, completing 21-of-33 passes for 287 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.
San Diego (0-7) is off to its worst start since beginning the 1975 season with 11 straight losses.
"I would say that's pretty much of an indication of how things have gone for us," Chargers coach Mike Riley said. "This is really frustrating. We played hard down to the end but Buffalo made the plays."
After turning the ball over three times in the first half, the Chargers got their act together in the third quarter and erased a four-point deficit.
Jermaine Fazande rumbled two yards for a score 4 1/2 minutes into the third quarter, giving the Chargers a 17-14 lead. They extended that lead on their next possession on Harbaugh's 52-yard touchdown pass to Jeff Graham.
Things appeared to get worse for the Bills late in the third quarter and an embarrassing loss seemed like it was a quarter away when Darren Bennett's punt pinned Buffalo on its own 1.
But Johnson engineered an 11-play, 99-yard drive to get Buffalo back in it. He culminated the march that took over just five minutes with an 11-yard TD pass to running back Shawn Bryson that pulled Buffalo within 24-21 with 13:48 left.
Johnson also led the Bills to the tying score in the waning seconds of the fourth quarter.
Taking over on their own 20 with 2:33 left, the Bills got into position with Johnson doing his part. He had completions of 17 yards to Moulds and 12 yards to Jeremy McDaniel that put the ball on the San Diego 34.
Moulds finished with a career-high 11 receptions for 170 yards.
"I think the character of some of the players came out today," Moulds said. "We didn't play particularly well in situations but we put oursevles in a position to win the game."
Johnson moved the ball closer for Christie with a 14-yard completion to Price that put the ball on the San Diego 9. Christie kicked a 29-yard field goal with seven seconds left, sending the game into overtime.
"We are totally stoked. I'm very happy we got a win," Johnson said. "A 99-yard and 80-yard drive to tie it up. When it was on the line, we made the plays."
Each team went could not move the ball on its ensuing possessions of overtime before Buffalo scored on its second chance. The Chargers have lost their last six games in overtime dating to a victory over Cleveland on October 1, 1987.
Harbaugh, who knew going into the game that he would play the first quarter before being replaced by Moses Moreno, led the Chargers to a score on their final possession of the opening period. John Carney culminated a 13-play, 62-yard drive with a 36-yard field goal. Moreno got his shot in the second quarter and his appearance provided disastrous results.
On his first possession, Moreno fumbled the snap and defensive end Pat Williams recovered on the Chargers' 32. On the next play, rookie Sammy Morris raced around left end for a 32-yard touchdown to give Buffalo the lead.
Moreno again coughed up the ball on San Diego's next possession. After getting hit by linebacker Sam Cowart, Moreno fumbled and Sam Rogers recovered on the San Diego 17.
After getting inside the 5, Jonathon Linton rumbled toward the goal line and fumbled into the end zone, where 6-3, 327-pound center Jerry Ostroski recovered a touchdown.
Harbaugh got the Chargers within 14-10 on their next possession with a 60-yard TD pass to Curtis Conway. A disappointment since signing as a free agent, Conway had his best game as Charger and finished with seven receptions for 143 yards. Graham also had a big game with nine catches for 113 yards.
