Chargers top Pats; Packers win
SAN DIEGO -- Philip Rivers threw three touchdown passes and San Diego's defense stuffed quarterback Matt Cassel on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line.
It was a measure of payback against a team that had beaten the Chargers three straight times, including in the playoffs the last two seasons.
Rivers drew raves for his toughness by playing the AFC championship game with a shredded ligament in his right knee, but he couldn't get the Chargers into the end zone that day and they lost 21-12 to the Patriots at Foxborough.
He had no trouble Sunday night, when he threw touchdown passes of 49 yards to Malcom Floyd, 4 yards to Vincent Jackson and 1 yard to Antonio Gates. It was the fourth time this season that Rivers threw three TD passes. Rivers completed 18 of 27 passes for 306 yards in the 30-10 win.
Rams 19, Redskins 17
LANDOVER, Md. -- Josh Brown kicked a 49-yard field goal on the last play of the game Sunday, giving the Rams a 19-17 upset of the Washington Redskins to end an eight-game losing streak over two seasons. Jim Haslett was a winner in his St. Louis head coaching debut.
It took a fluke play for the two-touchdown underdog to pull off the stunner. The Rams got one at the perfect time in the first half.
The Redskins (4-2) overcame a nine-point fourth-quarter deficit and appeared set to win their fifth straight game when Clinton Portis' 2-yard run with 3:47 left gave Washington a 17-16 lead. But Marc Bulger hit Donnie Avery down the right sideline for a 43-yard gain on third-and-13 to move into field goal territory.
But the Rams, being the Rams, nearly botched it. While St. Louis was trying to kill the clock to set up for an easy field goal attempt, offensive lineman Richie Incognito was called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for aiming some choice words at an official. The 15-yard infraction made Brown's kick longer, but he still managed to nail his fourth field goal of the game.
Two weeks ago, the Rams (1-4) looked like a team in need of a massive federal bailout. Instead, they fired coach Scott Linehan, reinstalled Bulger as the starting quarterback and used their bye week to get out of the dumps.