SAN DIEGO -- Antonio Gates had three touchdown catches -- including a spectacular, one-handed grab -- and the San Diego Chargers controlled the tempo to keep Russell Wilson off the field and upset the Super Bowl champion Seahawks 30-21 Sunday.
Gates' 21-yard catch late in the third quarter was epic, as the star tight end split two defenders and extended for Philip Rivers' pass, reaching out with his left hand to gather it in. Flat on his back, he held up the ball to show the referee he'd made the catch that gave San Diego a 27-14 lead.
Gates had two 8-yard scoring catches in the second quarter. The three touchdown receptions tied Gates' career high. Rivers was 28 of 37 for 284 yards.
Seattle was efficient when it had the ball, but it just didn't have it enough as the Chargers dominated time of possession on a steamy afternoon at Qualcomm Stadium.
San Diego (1-1) had blown an 11-point, fourth-quarter lead and lost its opener Monday night at Arizona. Seattle (1-1) had nine days to prepare after an impressive 20-point opening victory against Green Bay.
After Gates' third scoring catch, Wilson moved the Seahawks 70 yards, capping the drive with a 14-yard touchdown throw to Marshawn Lynch to pull to 27-21.
Seattle turned the ball over on downs on its 10 in the closing minutes and San Diego's Nick Novak kicked his third field goal, from 28 yards, with 16 seconds left.
San Diego used long drives all day to control play and wear out Seattle's vaunted defense.
Percy Harvin gave the Chargers a big gift when he fumbled the kickoff at the 28 after Novak's 43-yard field goal gave the Chargers a 13-7 lead with 4:40 to go before halftime.
After consecutive 10-yard penalties gave the Chargers a first-and-goal from the 23, Rivers completed a 15-yard screen pass to Eddie Royal before evading pressure and hitting Gates for their second scoring hookup of the quarter.
Wilson wasted no time in leading the Seahawks 61 yards in five plays, hitting Robert Turbin on a 3-yard TD pass to pull to 20-14. Turbin also had a 32-yard catch and a 10-yard run on the drive.
Rivers hit Gates on an 8-yard TD pass early in the second quarter.
Dwight Freeney sacked Wilson to force the Seahawks to punt on their first drive. Novak kicked a 50-yard field goal for San Diego.
The Seahawks came back with a three-play, 60-yard drive capped when Harvin took a pitch from Wilson, got the edge and ran 51 yards down the left sideline for a 7-3 lead.
REDSKINS 41, JAGUARS 10 Robert Griffin III dislocated his left ankle and DeSean Jackson sprained his left shoulder in the first quarter, then Kirk Cousins stepped in. He completed 22 of 33 passes for 250 yards and 2 touchdowns in host Washington's romp over Jacksonville. Griffin was carted to the locker room with his leg in a splint and could be out for two months. He will undergo X-rays to determine if the ankle is broken. Cousins subbed for Griffin and completed his first 12 passes. Ryan Kerrigan had four of the Redskins' 10 sacks, and Washington (1-1) defense didn't allow Jacksonville (0-2) past midfield until the final two minutes of the first half.
PACKERS 31, JETS 24 Aaron Rodgers threw for three touchdowns, Jordy Nelson had a career-high 209 yards receiving and the host Packers rallied from an 18-point deficit. New York appeared to tie it with 5 minutes left on a 37-yard catch by Jeremy Kerley on fourth down -- but it was negated because the Jets (1-1) called a timeout from the sideline just before the snap. The Packers (1-1) held on from there to avoid their first 0-2 start since 2006.
BENGALS 24, FALCONS 10 One Bengals player after another hobbled off and headed to the locker room. They still had more than enough to stay unbeaten with a victory over visiting Atlanta (1-1). Running back Giovani Bernard picked up the depleted offense by running for 90 yards. Cincinnati's defense held down Matt Ryan and the Bengals won their home opener and improved to 2-0 for the first time since 2006.
BILLS 29, DOLPHINS 10 C.J. Spiller scored on a 102-yard kickoff return, and rookie receiver Sammy Watkins had a 12-yard touchdown catch for the host Bills (2-0). The Dolphins (1-1) also lost a key offseason addition when running back Knowshon Moreno did not return after hurting his left elbow 11 minutes in. Spiller and Watkins, the Clemson connection, both scored in the third quarter, putting Buffalo ahead 23-10.
PATRIOTS 30, VIKINGS 7 Tom Brady and the visiting Patriots (1-1) took advantage of Adrian Peterson's absence and Matt Cassel's four interceptions to down the Vikings (1-1). Chandler Jones returned a field goal he blocked for a touchdown right before halftime. Brady went 15 for 22 for 149 yards, 1 touchdown and no turnovers, and Cassel's first start against his close friend and former mentor was a dud. Devin McCourty, Darrelle Revis, Logan Ryan and Dominique Easley all picked him off, setting up 17 points for the Patriots.
PANTHERS 24, LIONS 7 Cam Newton made a successful return to the field, throwing for 281 yards and a touchdown. Newton, who missed the season opener with a rib injury, was 22 of 34 and overcame five sacks. Carolina started 2-0 for the first time since 2008. Trailing 7-6 in the third quarter, the host Panthers took advantage of back-to-back Detroit turnovers and scored on three consecutive possessions.
TEXANS 30, RAIDERS 14 J.J. Watt caught a 1-yard touchdown pass, Arian Foster ran for 138 yards and a score and the visiting Texans won their second consecutive game. Instead of controlling the game from his usual defensive end position, Watt made his biggest impact on the opening drive when he lined up as a tight end. He caught a pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick to get Houston (2-0) started. The home opener for the Raiders (0-2) hardly could have gone worse as they fell behind 27-0 after three quarters.
RAMS 19, BUCCANEERS 17 Greg Zuerlein's fourth field goal, a 38-yarder with 38 seconds remaining, gave third-string quarterback Austin Davis and the visiting Rams a tight victory. Davis completed 22 of 29 passes for 235 yards with no interceptions in his first NFL start. Zac Stacy had a 2-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, and Zuerlein also delivered field goals of 36, 35 and 46 yards to help the Rams (1-1) rebound from a lopsided opening loss to Minnesota. Bobby Rainey rushed 144 yards and quarterback Josh McCown had two short TD runs for the Bucs (0-2).
CARDINALS 25, GIANTS 14 Ted Ginn Jr. ran 71 yards on a punt return for a go-ahead fourth-quarter touchdown. Playing in a regular-season game for the first time since 2010, Drew Stanton replaced the scratched Carson Palmer and led the visiting Cardinals (2-0) on three long scoring drives. Arizona won for the ninth time in 11 games. Eli Manning threw two touchdowns for the Giants (0-2), who turned over the ball four times.
Sports on 09/15/2014