(Sports Network) - Philip Rivers threw for 287 yards and four touchdowns, including a pair of scores to Antonio Gates, as the San Diego Chargers kept their playoff hopes alive by defeating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 41-24, at Raymond James Stadium.

Rivers completed 21-of-31 passes, while Gates had four catches for 43 yards for the Chargers (7-8), who have won three straight games. San Diego is now one game behind Denver for first place in the AFC West.

The Chargers will host the Broncos next Sunday with the winner claiming the division title. Buffalo helped San Diego keep its playoff hopes alive when the Bills upset Denver 30-23 on Sunday.

"We really was sharp," Chargers head coach Norv Turner said about Rivers. "You play a team like Tampa and they kind of decide what they are going to do and they were going to blitz us and stop the run and he handled it extremely well and got us into the right runs and the right passes."

Darren Sproles had three grabs for 46 yards and a score, while Antoine Cason had a 59-yard interception return for a TD in the win. Vincent Jackson contributed with seven catches for 111 yards and LaDainian Tomlinson rushed for 90 yards on 21 carries.

Jeff Garcia turned in a gritty effort for Tampa Bay (9-6), completing 21-of-35 passes for 232 yards with one touchdown pass and a rushing score before leaving late in the fourth quarter after suffering a bloody forehead following a hard hit.

"We battled back, second half started off well with two scores on our opening two drives, unfortunately it didn't continue," Garcia said. "It was one of those games were offensively we needed to maintain pressure, maintain drives and unfortunately in that fourth quarter we killed ourselves with a couple of turnovers."

Antonio Bryant had six catches for 127 yards with a touchdown for the Buccaneers, who have dropped three in a row.

Tampa Bay hosts Oakland next Sunday and needs a win to have any chance of making the playoffs.

With the Chargers holding a 20-10 lead after one half, Tampa began the third quarter by marching 78 yards in 13 plays with Garcia finalizing the drive with a seven-yard touchdown scamper to make it a three-point game.

After San Diego went three-and-out on its first possession of the second half, the Bucs struck again when Garcia barely eluded a heavy Chargers pass rush and found a wide-open Bryant along the near sideline for a 71-yard score to give the hosts a 24-20 edge with 5:05 left in the third.

The back-and-forth affair continued when the Bolts answered with a Rivers-to-Gates five-yard hookup to put the guests back in front by a three- point margin in the early stages of the fourth.

Following a Tampa Bay punt, the Chargers found the end zone again when Rivers timed the Bucs blitz perfectly and dumped off a short pass to Sproles, who sprinted 32 yards for the score to make it a 34-24 game with 7:18 left in the fourth quarter.

With the Bucs desperately trying to get something going offensively, Garcia scrambled for a key first down but took a hard hit and was bleeding profusely from the forehead. The signal-caller stayed in the game momentarily and after converting another first down, had his pass intended for Ike Hilliard go off the hands of the veteran receiver and into the mitts of Cason, who took it back 59 yards for the score.

Tampa Bay then brought in McCown to replace Garcia, who was taken to the locker room for repairs, but the Bucs were unable to mount an attack and San Diego took over on downs and ran out the clock, earning the 41-24 victory.

The Chargers opened the scoring with 5:04 remaining in the opening quarter. After Bryant fumbled on the Buccaneers' opening drive, Rivers completed two short passes and three runs by Tomlinson got San Diego down to the Tampa Bay 26-yard-line. Three plays later Rivers hit Manumaleuna with a screen pass and the big tight end rumbled down the far sideline for the 11-yard score.

However, the lead was short-lived as Clifton Smith returned the ensuing kickoff 72 yards to the Chargers 11. B.J. Askew's one-yard touchdown leap over the top four plays later tied the contest at 7-7.

Rivers' 15-yard touchdown pass to Gates early in the second period capped a seven-play, 69-yard drive to put the Bolts back in front by seven. A 28-yard field goal by Nate Kaeding put the visitors ahead by a 17-7 margin with 5:32 left in the half.

Matt Bryant's 49-yard effort with 17 seconds remaining cut the Bucs' deficit to 17-10, but a career-long 57-yarder by Kaeding as time expired put San Diego up 20-10 heading into the break.

Game Notes

The Chargers improved to 8-1 all-time against the Buccaneers...The Bucs are now 6-1 at home this season.



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