The San Diego Chargers (5-3) were able to get a late game-winning drive led by Phillip Rivers to take down the New York Giants (5-4).  The game was close throughout and Rivers was able to storm the Chargers 80-yards down the field to win it after throwing two interceptions earlier in the game.  He hit Vincent Jackson with 21 seconds to play on an 18-yard touchdown to beat the Giants.  Rivers finished with three touchdowns and the two picks, while throwing for 209 yards on 24/36 passes.  The Chargers failed to get much going in their running game, getting only 34 yards as a team and just 22 yards on 12 carries from LaDainian Tomlinson.

The Chargers defense let Eli Manning throw two touchdowns and 215 yards on 25/33 attempts.  They also let them rush for 116 yards as a team.  They did however keep them out of the endzone enough, especially when it mattered.  The Giants stormed the ball all the way to the Chargers’ 4-yard line with little time to play.  A holding penalty helped the Chargers out big time and they were able to do the rest and keep the Giants out of the endzone.  They settled for a field goal to put them up six, setting the table for Rivers and his 80-yard comeback drive.  Rivers handled the pressure great, going 6-8 on the drive and leading the Chargers to a huge win.  Shawne Merriman added some icing to the cake, sacking Eli Manning on the final play to end any hopes of a miracle comeback.

The San Diego Chargers (4-3) are on the road this weekend against the New York Giants (5-3).  The Giants did start off the season great, winning their first five games, but they have lost their last three and have been playing terrible.  I’m expecting the Giants to come out with a sense of urgency in this one though, so it should be a close game.  The Chargers offense should be successful on the ground since the Giants defense is giving up 113 rushing yards per game.  Once on top of the league in run-defense, the Giants have been struggling lately.  LaDainian Tomlinson and Darren Sproles should be ready to run in this one.  If they can find success, it will make things a whole lot easier for the always dangerous Philip Rivers.

The Chargers defense will not have an easy day, as I am expecting Eli Manning to bounce back from two straight terrible games.  This is a key part of the season and the Giants do not want to drop four straight.  Eli has not looked like himself lately and has been throwing a lot of interceptions lately, so the Chargers could get some turnovers.  They need to make sure they don’t let Brandon Jacobs get going either, as a good running game always makes Eli Manning better.  This should be a close game, but if the Chargers come out and play the way they are capable of and the Giants continue their recent struggles it could be a blowout.

FINAL SCORE PREDICTION:  San Diego Chargers 31, New York Giants 30

The Chargers will be without inside linebacker Tim Dobbins for at least two weeks due to a knee injury.  He has played in 7 games (2 starts) for the Chargers this season and he has 33 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 pass defensed, 1 sack and 1 interception.  Brandon Siler will start if Kevin Burnett is not ready to return from injury.  Siler has played in 7 games (0 starts) this season for the Chargers and he has 22 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss.  Kevin Burnett has missed the last two games due to a ankle injury but he’s getting close to returning to action.  Burnett has played in 5 games (all starts) this season for the Chargers and he has 32 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 sack.  The Chargers really need Burnett ready to go as Siler would have a rough time dealing with Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw this week.

The Chargers have released 31-year old WR Chris Chambers.  Chambers caught 9 passes this season for 122 yards (13.6 avg) with 1 TD pass for the Chargers as he was being phased out more as the season went on.  In three years with the Chargers, Chambers played in 31 games in which he caught 77 passes for 1,139 yards (14.8 avg) with 10 TD grabs.  Chambers never came through like the Chargers thought he would after they acquired him from the Dolphins three years ago.  28-year old Malcolm Floyd will replace Chambers in the starting lineup.  He has played in 7 games for the Chargers this season and he has caught 11 passes for 251 yards (22.8 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Floyd will have to prove that he has the toughness to catch shorter passes and he’ll have to go over the middle a lot more than he has in the past.  Still, Floyd appears to be a better player than Chambers right now so the Chargers won’t miss him.

The San Diego Chargers prevailed in another tough battle with the Raiders yesterday.  Philip Rivers was efficient in this game as always as he completed 16 of 25 passes for 249 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 interception.  LaDainian Tomlinson was busy for the Chargers in this game with 18 carries for 56 yards (3.1 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  Darren Sproles carried the ball 5 times for 38 yards (7.6 ypc) and he also caught 1 pass for 8 yards but he lost another fumble.  Vincent Jackson had another good game for the Chargers yesterday with 8 catches for 103 yards (12.9 avg) with 1 TD grab.  The Chargers finished up with 346 total yards on offense (100 rushing, 246 passing) in this game.

The defense was outstanding for the Chargers yesterday.  The linebackers had big games for the Chargers as Stephen Cooper led the team in tackles with 10.  Shawne Merriman was all over the place for the Chargers finishing with 7 tackles and 2 sacks.   Shaun Phillips finished up with 3 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 tackle for a loss and he hit the QB twice.  The Raiders finished up with 180 total yards in this game (99 rushing, 81 passing).  The Chargers are now 4-3 on the season.