MINNEAPOLIS - Over and over, the Chargers heaped praise on the upcoming opponent. They complimented its talent and talked about what a challenge it will be to win today.

The extent of the gushing left one wondering if the Chargers had peeked ahead a week on the schedule and mistakenly thought they were playing the Super Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts today instead of next Sunday.

But no, the Chargers really were talking about the Minnesota Vikings, the same Vikings that limp into the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome today with a 2-5 record.

To a man, the Chargers (4-3) insist that the record doesn't reflect the strength of the 2007 Vikings.

"Absolutely not," running back LaDainian Tomlinson said. "This is a really good team. I'm really surprised that they're 2-5. They could very easily be 5-2 because they play good defense and they have a real good running game. They can do some things in special teams. Their return game is really good - punt return and kick return.

"This is a very explosive team that should have a better record than they have."

Minnesota has lost five of its last six games since routing Michael Vick-less Atlanta in its season opener. The Vikings have scored just 10 offensive touchdowns, and their passing game ranks 30th in the league. Defensively, they rank 32nd and last in the NFL against the pass and have allowed opposing quarterbacks to complete a mind-boggling 67.4 percent of their passes.

Yet among the Chargers expressing fear of the Vikings was quarterback Philip Rivers.

"Obviously, like a lot teams in this league, the record doesn't always tell the truth," Rivers said. "You could flip that around and they could be 5-2 with just a couple plays here and there.

"When look at them on tape, you don't have to lie to yourselves and make yourselves think they're better than 2-5. We can see it. We know what we're up against and we'll be ready."

What sticks out to the Chargers is the Vikings' play in the trenches. Minnesota's rushing attack is second in the NFL, and Pro Bowl linemen such as center Matt Birk and guard Steve Hutchinson have helped rookie Adrian Peterson rush for a league-leading 740 yards.

Defensively, there's no better tandem of run-stopping defensive tackles in the NFL than Pro Bowlers Pat Williams and Kevin Williams. Last season, the Vikings joined the 2000 Baltimore Ravens as the only teams to hold opponents under 1,000 rushing yards for the season since the 1969 AFL-NFL merger. Minnesota ranks third against the run this season.

In essence, the game will come down to strength against strength - the Chargers' dependency on Tomlinson, the undisputed best back in the game, against the Vikings' sturdy run defense.

"We've got to do what we do," Chargers coach Norv Turner said. "You have to be smart. You have to pick the best types of runs and we have to get L.T. the football.

"The biggest thing you look at is no one runs the ball very well against them early. Some people have had some runs as the games wore on in the third or fourth quarter.

"The running game is a big part of what we do. So we have to give ourselves opportunities to run the ball, but we have to be smart in what we do."

A victory today would increase the Chargers' winning streak to four games and guarantee at least a share of first place in the AFC West. It would also further separate them from the horrendous 1-3 start and put them on pace for a 10-win season.

"We started out extremely slow and we weren't happy," general manager A.J. Smith said. "We're very, very lucky people here with the Chargers that nobody was 4-0 and 3-1.

"If we can go up there and get a victory, that would mean we would be in good shape trying to win the West with a long way to go. It would also mean that we accomplished a 4-0 record in the second quarter, and more importantly, beat Minnesota and we're absolutely, positively, without a doubt in the thick of the Western division race as we go down the stretch."

Then the focus can turn to the Colts. Turner wanted to hear nothing about the following week's opponent as the team prepared for Minnesota.

"We don't have a lot of room to have a setback," Turner said. "We had our setbacks in September. We need to take advantage of every opportunity we can, and this is an opportunity for us to go play a game."

Contact staff writer Mike Sullivan at (760) 739-6645 or msullivan@nctimes.com.