EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. --- Philip Rivers showed the New York Giants exactly what they traded away in 2004, and this one really hurt the team that wanted Eli Manning so much.

Rivers capped an 80-yard drive with an 18-yard pass to Vincent Jackson with 21 seconds to go, and the San Diego Chargers stunned the Giants 21-20 on Sunday, handing New York (5-4) its fourth loss in a row.

Rivers was 24 of 36 for 209 yards and three touchdowns, including two to Jackson, helping San Diego (5-3) win its third consecutive game. It was the first meeting between the quarterbacks since the trade.

"It's a big emotional win," Rivers said. "I don't need a real reason why, but it ranks right up there with the win at Indy in the playoffs (2009). The link between me and Eli is always going to be there. So yeah, it's a little special."

Rivers also found Jackson on a 10-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter. He hit Kris Wilson on a 2-yarder in the third to give San Diego a 14-7 lead.

Terrell Thomas intercepted Rivers' pass late in the fourth quarter and returned it 33 yards to the San Diego 4. A holding penalty on first down pushed New York back 10 yards, and it had to settle for a short field goal and a 6-point lead.

Manning threw TD passes of 6 yards to Steve Smith and 8 yards to Kevin Boss, while Lawrence Tynes kicked field goals of 38 and 22 yards.