SAN DIEGO -- The Oakland Raiders came full circle at Qualcomm Stadium after disposing of the San Diego Chargers 19-16 on Sunday afternoon.

The last time the playoffs included the Raiders was during the 2002 campaign. Oakland capped that season by advancing to the Super Bowl at Qualcomm, where they lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

But the long postseason drought is over for Oakland (11-3), which rallied behind Sebastian Janikowski's four field goals for the playoff-clinching win. The Raiders also moved one game ahead of Kansas City atop the AFC West.

Janikowski is the only Raider remaining from the franchise's last Super Bowl team of 14 years ago.

"I can't even describe my words man, it feels so special," he said. "I waited a long time for that."

San Diego (5-9) lost its third straight game overall and 12th in its last 13 games against AFC West foes.

The Raiders, whose fans dominated the season-high crowd of 68,352 at Qualcomm Stadium, forged ahead on Janikowski's 44-yard field goal with 2:40 left.

"I looked around the stadium and (saw) our fans just going crazy," Oakland quarterback Derek Carr said. "It looked like a home game for us."

Carr kept the go-ahead drive alive by running for a first down on a third-and-8 on the San Diego 29. He completed 19 of 30 passes for 213 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

Philip Rivers was 17 of 30 for 206 yards with two touchdowns and a pick for the Chargers.

Rivers was intercepted by Reggie Nelson on the final play for last-place San Diego -- its second turnover of the fourth quarter.

"They played it pretty well," Rivers said. "I could have not thrown the ball and kept the stat line clean."

Before Rivers' miscue, rookie running back Kenneth Farrow fumbled at the San Diego 28.

"We've got to protect the ball," said Chargers coach Mike McCoy. "It's an issue we have been dealing with all year long. Going against a good team like we played today, you can't make those mistakes."

Janikowski converted a 21-yard field goal to tie the score at 16-16 with eight minutes to play. The Raiders had a first down at the Chargers 1 after recovering a fumble by Farrow but couldn't reach the end zone.

Rivers notched his second scoring pass, connecting with Hunter Henry midway through the third quarter on a 7-yard touchdown. Rivers was 5-for-5 on the drive, with Dontrelle Inman getting 53 receiving yards.

Henry's touchdown pushed the Chargers back ahead 16-13 as Josh Lambo missed the extra point.

The Raiders took their first lead of the game on the initial series of the second half. Janikowski kicked his second field goal of the game, from 33 yards, for a 13-10 advantage.

The Raiders tied the game at 10-10, shredding the Chargers' run defense in the last 90 seconds of the half. Carr took care of the final 13 yards, hitting Michael Crabtree for a touchdown on a play that was flipped after initially being ruled an incomplete pass.

Lambo's 35-yard field goal in the half's final minutes extended the San Diego's cushion to 10-3.

Oakland had its second red-zone turnover in consecutive possessions when Trovon Reed intercepted Carr at San Diego 6-yard line in the second quarter. Carr, who had 9.7 quarterback rating in last week's loss to the Chiefs, tried to force the pass into tight coverage and paid for it.

The Raiders looked poised to take the lead late in the first quarter, but Latavius Murray fumbled for the first time this season, coughing it up at the Charger 9-yard line. Melvin Ingram caused it and Kyle Emanuel recovered it.

Janikowski's 45-yard field goal in the first quarter pulled the Raiders to within 7-3.

The Chargers struck first with a 47-yard strike from Rivers to Travis Benjamin in capping a game-opening 91-yard drive. Benjamin, who has had some notable drops this season, got behind Sean Smith in single coverage for the early score. That 47-yard reception gave Benjamin more receiving yards than he had in his previous four games.

The Chargers continued a disturbing trend as they lost a fourth-quarter lead for the seventh time this season.

"It (stinks)," McCoy said about his consistently collapsing at inopportune moments. "It's tough. We can't turn the ball over in the fourth quarter."

NOTES: Raiders DT Stacy McGee (ankle) and SS Karl Joseph (toe) were absent from the lineup. ... DE Khalil Mack recorded a sack in his ninth straight game. ... QB Derek Carr became the second player in franchise history to have multiple 3,500-yard passing seasons. ... Chargers RB Melvin Gordon (hip, knee) didn't play. Undrafted rookie Kenneth Farrow got his first NFL start. ... CB Trevor Williams replaced Craig Mager (shoulder). ... LT King Dunlap exited the game with a leg injury.