Cincinnati, OH -- (Sports Network) - LaDainian Tomlinson ran for 104 yards and four touchdowns and Philip Rivers threw for 337 yards and three scores as the San Diego Chargers overcame a 21-point halftime deficit to defeat the Cincinnati Bengals, 49-41, at Paul Brown Stadium.

Tomlinson carried the ball 22 times and also had six catches for 54 yards while Rivers completed 24 of his 36 passes for the Chargers (7-2), who have won three straight.

"Being involved in that game, it was about like it was a cartoon or something," Tomlinson said. "Exhausting. I can't wait until I get on the bus, where I can think and wonder what happened today."

Malcom Floyd had five receptions for 109 yards and a touchdown and Donnie Edwards recorded 13 tackles as San Diego outscored Cincinnati in the second half, 42-13.

Carson Palmer threw for 440 yards with three touchdowns on 31-of-42 passing and Chad Johnson set a club record with 11 catches for 260 yards and two scores for the Bengals (4-5), who have dropped three in a row.

Rudi Johnson ran for 85 yards on 18 touches with a score and T.J. Houshmandzadeh gained 88 yards on seven catches in the loss.

Trailing 28-7 entering the third quarter, Tomlinson led the Chargers by scoring three of his four touchdowns in the second half.

Tomlinson made it a 14-point contest with a four-yard TD dash, capping a six- play, 69-yard march just over four minutes into the third. Then, following a three-and-out by Cincinnati, San Diego cut its deficit to seven when Rivers hooked up with Floyd for a 46-yard touchdown pass on the first play.

Shayne Graham's 21-yard chip shot gave the Bengals a 31-21 advantage with 6:27 remaining in the third, however, San Diego continued to play catch-up and responded with a nine-play, 80-yard drive as Brandon Manumaleuna took in a nine-yard TD pass from Rivers to cut within three.

Just 18 seconds later, Palmer found Johnson wide open down the left sideline for a 74-yard catch-and-run score to put Cincinnati back up, 38-28 with 2:50 left in the third.

The Chargers, though, bridged the third and fourth quarter with a 40-yard march that ended with Tomlinson rushing off the left side for a two-yard touchdown. Rivers went 5-of-6 for 60 yards during the possession, including a 25-yard toss to Keenan McCardell.

Then, on the Bengals' first play from their own 20, Palmer fumbled the ball after being sacked at the 11-yard line and San Diego's Shaun Phillips recovered it at the nine. On the next play, Tomlinson scampered in the end zone for his fourth touchdown of the game to give the Chargers their first lead, 42-38.

Graham split the uprights with a 44-yard field goal to make it a one-point affair with 7:48 left in the fourth.

San Diego followed with a 12-play, 72-yard scoring possession that chewed 5:19 off the clock. On third down from Cincinnati's five-yard line, Rivers lobbed a five-yard TD pass to Manumaleuna to put the Chargers up by eight with 2:29 left in regulation.

Faced with one final drive, Palmer drove the Bengals down to San Diego's 15 on an 11-yard toss to Chris Henry, and completions of 22 and 12 yards to Chad Johnson. On 4th-and-10, Palmer's pass to Glenn Holt fell incomplete, allowing the Chargers to run out the clock.

"As he grows as a player, he's unbelievable," tight end Antonio Gates said about Rivers. "He's doing a tremendous job leading this team. He was on the sideline saying they were going to need to score more than 28 points to beat us. What more could you ask for in a leader?"

Cincinnati took a 7-0 lead on its first possession when Jeremi Johnson punched it in the end zone from three yards out. Palmer connected with Reggie Kelly for a 27-yard gain to key the six-play, 62-yard drive.

Rudi Johnson's seven-yard touchdown run with 1:36 left in the first put the Bengals up by two touchdowns. Cincinnati orchestrated a 10-play, 89-yard march that ate up 4:27 of clock and featured a spectacular one-handed, 26-yard catch by Tony Stewart near the sideline at San Diego's 32.

After a three-and-out by the Chargers, Mike Scifres was forced to punt from his own end zone and the Bengals took over at their own 49 after a 10-yard return by Deltha O'Neal. On the first play of the possession, Palmer went deep down the right side of the field and hit Chad Johnson for a 51-yard touchdown to give Cincinnati a 21-0 advantage with nine seconds remaining in the first.

In the second frame, Cincinnati drove 55 yards in just over five minutes, but Graham missed a 51-yard field goal wide left.

The Chargers then took over at their own 41 and cut the deficit to 14 with 5:27 to play in the half when Tomlinson ran off left tackle to paydirt for a nine-yard rushing score.

On their ensuing possession, the Bengals responded with a 14-play series that culminated with Henry's seven-yard TD reception in the back of the end zone with six seconds left.

Game Notes

Tomlinson has 15 touchdowns in the last five games...Gates had five catches for 69 yards...Cincinnati's Chris Perry rushed for 31 yards on four carries...San Diego has won seven of the last nine against Cincinnati...The game featured 975 yards of total offense, including 545 by the Bengals...San Diego was a perfect 6-for-6 in the red zone.