SAN DIEGO (AP) — Philip Rivers rallied San Diego to 30 straight points, including throwing a go-ahead, 13-yard touchdown pass to tight end Ladarius Green early in the fourth quarter, and the Chargers stunned the Detroit Lions 33-28 in what could be their final home opener at Qualcomm Stadium.
Rivers overcame two interceptions, including a 31-yard return for a touchdown by Glover Quin, to complete 35 of 42 passes for 404 yards and two scores.
Green was subbing for Antonio Gates, who’s suspended without pay for four games for testing positive for PEDs. Keenan Allen had 15 catches — tying the club record set by Hall of Famer Kellen Winslow in 1984 — for 166 yards.
The Chargers trailed 21-3 after Matthew Stafford threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to Eric Ebron midway through the second quarter. Rivers was picked off by Darius Slay in the end zone just before halftime to keep the score at 21-10.
But the second half was all San Diego. Rivers also threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Stevie Johnson and Danny Woodhead’s 1-yard TD run gave San Diego a 33-21 lead.
| First Quarter | ||
| DET – TD, Ameer Abdullah, 24-yard run (Matt Prater kick), 10:46 | ||
| SND – FG, Josh Lambo, 32 yards, 0:22 | ||
| Second Quarter | ||
| DET – TD, Glover Quin, 31-yard interception return (Matt Prater kick), 12:28 | ||
| DET – TD, Matthew Stafford, 18-yard pass to Eric Ebron (Matt Prater kick), 8:49 | ||
| SND – TD, Danny Woodhead, 9-yard run (Josh Lambo kick), 5:02 | ||
| Third Quarter | ||
| SND – FG, Josh Lambo, 25 yards, 9:21 | ||
| SND – TD, Philip Rivers, 12-yard pass to Stevie Johnson (Josh Lambo kick), 4:03 | ||
| Fourth Quarter | ||
| SND – TD, Philip Rivers, 13-yard pass to Ladarius Green (Josh Lambo kick failed), 11:49 | ||
| SND – TD, Danny Woodhead, 1-yard run (Josh Lambo kick), 2:33 | ||
| DET – TD, Matthew Stafford, 21-yard pass to Theo Riddick (Matt Prater kick), 1:04 | ||
| TEAM STATISTICS | ||
| DET | SND | |
| First Downs | 16 | 27 |
| Rushes-Yards | 16-69 | 30-95 |
| Passing Yards | 233 | 388 |
| Comp-Att-Int | 19-30-2 | 35-42-2 |
| Return Yards | 170 | 51 |
| Punts-Avg. | 5-35.4 | 2-69.0 |
| Fumbles-Lost | 1-0 | 1-1 |
| Penalties-Yards | 4-30 | 5-40 |
| INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS | ||
| RUSHING (Team: player, attempts-yards) | ||
| DET: Ameer Abdullah 7-50, Joique Bell 6-14, Zach Zenner 2-6, Matthew Stafford 1-(minus 1). | ||
| SND: Melvin Gordon 14-51, Danny Woodhead 12-42, Branden Oliver 2-4, Philip Rivers 2-(minus 2). | ||
| PASSING (Team: player, completions-attempts-interceptions-yards) | ||
| DET: Matthew Stafford 19-30-2-246. | ||
| SND: Philip Rivers 35-42-2-404. | ||
| RECEIVING (Team: player, receptions-yards) | ||
| DET: Ameer Abdullah 4-44, Eric Ebron 4-53, Golden Tate 4-24, Joique Bell 2-27, Calvin Johnson 2-39, Theo Riddick 2-37, Lance Moore 1-22. | ||
| SND: Keenan Allen 15-166, Stevie Johnson 6-82, Ladarius Green 5-74, Danny Woodhead 4-20, Melvin Gordon 3-16, Malcom Floyd 1-29, Branden Oliver 1-17. |