Question: A 23-21 loss to the San Diego Chargers at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, Calif., Sunday night. An unbelievable, crazy game, one in which the Colts rallied from a 23-point deficit to come within two points of victory. A lot went wrong and still, the Colts had a great chance to win the game . . .

Answer: We did have a great chance to win the football game and in spite of what you may say in terms of the officiating call at the end where they reversed the first down, all that did was put us in a position where we would probably have had to defend the field for about 1:20. The way our defense was playing, which was, in short, magnificent, I like our chances there. You’ve got to make the field goal. That’s the bottom line.

Q: You just touched on it, but the defense played awfully well, particularly some young players who hadn’t played much before Sunday night. Rookie linebacker Clint Session, making his first NFL start, made two crucial interceptions. The defense didn’t seem to be in awe of 2006 NFL Most Valuable Player LaDainian Tomlinson . . .

A: They did a great job. Our young kids – (defensive tackle) Quinn Pitcock, (defensive tackle) Ed Johnson, (linebacker) Clint Session – played about as well as we could have expected them to play. You’re never happy when you lose a ballgame, but (former Baltimore Colts and Miami Dolphins Head Coach) Don Shula taught me a long, long time ago: every time you go out there, you have to take away something positive. There were a lot of smiles in this building this afternoon based upon the way our defense played and most particularly, the way our young guys played. They really played hard and they got some things done: (defensive tackle) Keyunta Dawson, Quinn Pitcock, Ed Johnson, Clint Session – they got the job done. (First-year cornerback) Timmy Jennings. This is a good, good defense that essentially gave nine points to an exceptionally explosive offense with the best back in football. We’re going to have to iron out the special teams. No question about that. Absolutely no question about that. And we’re going to have to get healthy again on offense and we will. Let me say this: offensively, we couldn’t have been more banged up and the guys who came in and played – particularly on the offensive line – were absolutely amazing. They really did a great job.

Q: First-year offensive tackle Michael Toudouze was signed off the practice squad Saturday and played his first regular-season snaps against one of the best pass-rushing linebackers in the NFL. He didn’t allow a sack.

A: He did a great job. He did a tremendous job.

Q: Considering the circumstances, there was an awful lot to be proud of about how the Colts played Sunday night, was there not?

A: You deserve to be proud of them. It was a great, great effort. But that’s something that since (Colts Head Coach) Tony (Dungy) has been the coach here has been the price of admission. We give great effort week in and week out. It doesn’t matter what the score is or who’s out there. But I’m really proud of our backup players who came in and did such a magnificent job. Michael Toudouze, first NFL game, stepped in there and did a terrific job. I could go on and on. They really did a great job of making sure they did the very best we could. In the end, the special teams did us in and we have to improve that, but it certainly wasn’t for a lack of effort, that’s for sure.

Q: When a player such as Toudouze, who never has played in the NFL, is called into action quickly as he was, what’s the key to be prepared?

A: First of all, you have to stay mentally ready. You have to know the game plan and you don’t get many reps at all practicing it. Secondly, you have to study the opposition as though you’re going to play. He had to study (Pro Bowl linebacker Shawne) Merriman as if he was going to play him. And then he finds out on Friday that he’s going to be up – with no prior preparation. It’s a tribute to him that he was a professional about preparation and doing his job, which Tony and I preach to the players continually. You never know when your number’s going to be called. You never really know because strange things happen with injuries in this game. He was prepared and went in and did a great job. He had one shaky play on the opening play, which resulted in an interception, but other than that, he was virtually flawless the rest of the way and he fought like the devil against a great player. And in the end, by the way, we wore them down. If we kicked the field goal, it’s because we wore them down in the end. Special teams is a third of the game. The old saying is, ‘You rarely win games on special teams, but you can lose them a lot.’ That’s what occurred. It’s that in a nutshell. In terms of preparation and getting ready, all of our young players I thought did a terrific job.

Q: Sometimes teams kick field goals on third down in case there’s a bad snap or a block. Is it possible if you miss a field goal on third down to kick it again on fourth down?

A: Only if it’s blocked. Let me explain the strategy we were employing Sunday night. It’s exactly the right strategy. We had assumed that (running back) Joseph Addai made the first down. So did everybody in America. Unfortunately, one guy in the building didn’t and guessed at it and it changed. But that’s immaterial. It didn’t affect the outcome of the game. However, had the first down stood, what we then would have done was knelt down three times, which would have used up all the time left on the clock. We would have taken a timeout with seven seconds left and kicked the winning field goal and San Diego would never have gotten the ball back. That was exactly the right strategy. It was exactly what we needed to do. In our view, we executed. The replay official didn’t think we did. We’ll discuss that with the league office at the appropriate time. That’s all that needs to be said about that, because they really don’t deserve much more mention than that. In the end, regardless of what occurred after that, you have to kick the field goal. I really like our chances with 1:20 to go with our defense on the field with them having to kick a game-clinching field goal with no times out.

Q: Any chance that you try to run the ball if you had made the first down?

A: No. I don’t think so. I think Tony was planning on taking a knee and using all of the clock. That’s what you really wanted to do, was take all that clock down with no opporunity. You’re going to have to kick off. Ostensibly, you kick the ball along the sideline and somebody other than their return man handles it. Now, they have no times out and 1:20 to go to set up the winning field goal. I would have liked our chances there. Obviously, we wanted to do it the other way, but that’s the way it goes.

Q: And no thought of going for it on 4th-and-1 in that situation?

A: No. No. No. You kick the field goal. Why go for it on fourth down? Now, you’re removing any c