How many times have you heard it come out of the mouth of a coach or a player?

One play at a time.

It is one of the most used of football clichés. There’s a reason for that. It’s the truest.

An average game in the NFL has 140 to 150 moments where the ball is kicked or snapped. Who is to know which of those will be the most meaningful? Sometimes the scoreboard and clock remove all doubt. Many times the significance is not so obvious.

That’s why every play must be approached as the turning point, the ultimate moment of the game. Who’s to know that it’s not?

It’s sometimes a hard concept for young players to learn. When you are young, there’s always another game, another year, more opportunities to come. Young players don’t wonder whether they’ll get another chance. They just assume it’s so.

They forget that every play is big.

How big? Check in today with the San Diego Chargers. They’ll tell you how big a play can be.

Just three weeks and a day ago, the Chargers were this close to seeing their season come to an end. They were at Arrowhead Stadium, and despite the fact they had just scored, they were still down by five points with 73 seconds left to play.

At this point, San Diego could not afford a loss. They were three games behind with three games to play. They had to win three and Denver had to lose three for the Chargers to make the playoffs.

What the Chargers knew and could control was simple: they had to win.

An onsides kick attempt by punter Mike Scifres bounced into the air and into the hands of Dwayne Bowe. If the Chiefs wide receiver holds onto the ball, the Chargers chances of making the playoffs would have died at that very moment.

But Bowe did not hold onto the ball. He was hit and fumbled. The ball was recovered by the Chargers. In just a few plays, Pat Surtain would make a mistake in coverage and then Vincent Jackson would beat Jarrad Page in the end zone and just that quickly, San Diego had a lead.

They soon had a victory. They added another one the next Sunday, beating Tampa Bay. Then came the third one, a crushing defeat of the Broncos and the Chargers had won the AFC West with an 8-8 record.

Then Saturday night, they beat the Indianapolis Colts 23-17 and advanced to the divisional playoffs round with a trip this Sunday to play the Pittsburgh Steelers.

If Bowe holds onto that ball, the Chargers would be on vacation just like the Chiefs. Instead, a month later they are two more victories away from the Super Bowl.

One moment in time, one fumbled onsides kick; it can be any play, at any moment.

History waits to be made … one play at a time.