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Chargers TE Antonio Gates caught one of Philip Rivers' three TD passes.

It was over when ...
LaDainian Tomlinson went in for his second rushing touchdown of the game to give the Chargers a 45-23 lead with under four minutes remaining. San Diego was never seriously threatened in the second half, but that score officially put the game out of reach.

Game ball
Chargers QB Philip Rivers had the start that gives signal callers nightmares. His first pass was intercepted by the Jets' David Barrett and brought back for a touchdown and his second pass was also nearly picked off. The way he responded to those errors earned him the game ball. He was nearly flawless the rest of the way as he went on to compete 19 of his next 23 passes for 250 yards and three touchdowns.

Key stat
In 11 possessions, the Chargers punted the ball only one time. That puts in perspective the dominance of their offensive performance and shows how effective they were at continuing drives and converting their scoring chances.

Noteworthy
Jets QB Brett Favre has never won a game in which his team trailed by at least 14 points. ... Favre now has 99 touchdown passes in his career from inside the 5-yard line after tossing two Monday night. ... Chargers CB Antonio Cromartie had two interceptions, the first of which he returned for a touchdown. ... Rookie FB Mike Tolbert scored his first career touchdown on a 1-yard first-quarter catch.