SAN DIEGO (AP) —
Carson Palmer looked like an NFL quarterback again, not like a guy who
had settled into semi-retirement in Southern California.
Philip Rivers looked, well, like the turnover-prone quarterback that he's been since opening day.
Palmer
threw two touchdown passes and Michael Bush ran 30 times for a
season-high 157 yards and one touchdown to lead the Oakland Raiders to a
24-17 win over San Diego on Thursday night, the Chargers' fourth straight loss.
The Raiders (5-4) broke a two-game losing streak and took a half-game lead over the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC West.
"I
wouldn't call it a must-win, but it was a big win for us," Raiders
defensive tackle Richard Seymour said. "These games in a sense count
twice. It's a win and also it's a win in the division. It gives us a leg
up right now."
Palmer threw touchdown passes of 33 and 26 yards
to Denarius Moore in his second start and third appearance since being
acquired in a trade with Cincinnati. He'd been semi-retired and living
in Del Mar, just north of San Diego, before being traded. He lives next
door to Chargers coach Norv Turner. Palmer was 14 of 20 for 299 yards, with one interception.
Bush helped carry the load for the Raiders with running and also had three catches for 85 yards.
The Chargers
(4-5) looked dismal most of the night and lost left tackle Marcus
McNeill, right guard Louis Vasquez and linebacker Takeo Spikes to
injuries.
The Raiders have won three straight against the Chargers. Before that, San Diego had won 13 straight in a rivalry that dates to the birth of the AFL.
With the Chargers
threatening to tie it, Rivers was intercepted in the end zone by Matt
Giordano with 3:22 left. It was Rivers' NFL- and career-high 15th
interception. Rivers was sacked on consecutive plays near midfield to
end the game. He fumbled on the final play, giving him an NFL-high 19
turnovers.
Rivers was 23 of 47 for 274 yards. He was sacked six
times as the Raiders overwhelmed Brandyn Dombrowski, who replaced
McNeill at left tackle.
"Obviously some of the offensive linemen went down and we smelled blood and we just went after him," Seymour said.
"All
week our defensive coordinator said, 'Hey, they can score from anywhere
on the field and it's going to be up to our defensive front to get
pressure on the quarterback,'" Seymour added. We knew we could get it
done but it was going to be a collective effort."
The Raiders had 14-point leads in the second and third quarters, and San Diego could never quite catch up.
San
Diego struggled in the first half, going three-and-out four straight
times after getting a 20-yard field goal by Nick Novak on the opening
drive.
Rivers was only 4 of 11 for 44 yards for a passer rating of
49.1. By comparison, Raiders punter Shane Lechler had a rating of 39.6
by going 0 for 1. Sebastian Janikowski has a sore hamstring, so the
Raiders tried a fake punt from the Chargers' 34
on their first drive. Lechler threw a pass to Jacoby Ford, who was
mauled by Quentin Jammer because pass interference can't be called in a
punt formation.
Bush scored on a 2-yard leap over the pile late in
the first quarter and Janikowski kicked a 23-yard field goal on the
next drive. Palmer threw a 33-yard scoring pass to Moore for a 17-3 lead
that held up at halftime.
The Chargers
finally came to life on the first drive of the second half, capped by
rookie Vincent Brown's leaping catch of a 30-yard touchdown pass in
double coverage, his first NFL score, to pull to 17-10.
Rivers completed five passes on the drive, one more than he had in the first half, and the Chargers gained 80 yards, compared to 65 yards total in the first half.
The
Raiders pushed the lead to 24-10 on the next drive after Palmer found
Moore for a 26-yard score. Two plays earlier, Bush gained 55 yards on a
screen pass.
Brown appeared to come down with another great TD
catch in the third quarter, this one for 33 yards. But referee Ed
Hochuli overturned it on replay, saying that since the defender landed
out of bounds with his hand on the ball, it was considered out of
bounds.
Three plays later, Rivers found fullback Jacob Hester for a 7-yard TD pass to pull to 24-17.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press.
San Diego Chargers' Nick Novak (9) follows through on a field goal in the first quarter against the Oakland Raiders in an NFL football game Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)
San Diego Chargers wide receiver Vincent Brown (86) appears to catch a third-quarter pass in the end zone against Oakland Raiders' Lito Sheppard (21) in an NFL football game Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)
