by Brian Anderson – Wannamakeabet Staff Writer
Sitting 0-4 and at the bottom of their division, the Los Angeles Chargers never gave up on their season. That resiliency is the reason the Chargers – who are now 8-7 – have a chance to make the playoffs for the first time since 2013. A 54-24 victory against the Buffalo Bills is what started Los Angeles’ surge in production. Those who did not see that game have surely heard about quarterback Nathan Peterman’s horrific day passing the football against that stingy Chargers defense. Over the next six weeks, LA would post a 5-1 record, with their only loss coming on the road against a desperate Kansas City Chiefs squad. Although, it was their defense that may have sparked their run, the offense was not far behind. The Bolts are 1 of 4 NFL teams with a 4,000+ yard passer(Phillip Rivers), a 1,000+ yard rusher(Melvin Gordon), and a 1,000+ yard receiver(Kennan Allen).
To make things more clear, one way for this Los Angeles team to break the playoff goal-line is to win their own home game against the Oakland Raiders, while the Tennessee Titans suffer a loss against the Jacksonville Jaguars, all the while the Buffalo Bills come up short against the Miami Dolphins. I will not take the time to explain every way the Bolts can make it to the dance, just know that no way will be an easy task. This now brings us to the betting aspect of this Week 17 game. The Chargers are surprisingly 7.5 point favorites. I expect this game to be closely fought, but high scoring for sure. That is why I am more interested in the Over/Under for this game. The Over/Under now sits at 42 and I am loving the Over here.
I understand that their last two outings came up short of that 42-point mark, but it isn’t about history here. It is all about the future, and how each of these teams are either fighting to get somewhere, or keep the other from reaching their destination. With the Chargers eying their first playoff berth since 2012, the Raiders would love to play spoilers in this spot. I’m sure they know that they will have to put up some points to do so against a dynamic LA offense. In recent years, the Raiders have been a much better team than the Chargers are accustomed to playing on Sundays. They are a team that now has a QB/WR duo who are nothing short of amazing. Derrick Carr and Amari Coopers will be looking to get revenge against this Chargers team who took them down earlier in the season.
The Chargers are more than capable of blowing any game wide open with their offensive weapons. Rivers, Allen, and Gordon were all selected to the 2017 Pro-Bowl for the prolific performances this season. Their production has stymied in recent weeks, which is all the more reason to believe that they are looking to go out with a bang. Prepare for a fast-paced, pass-heavy, and high-scoring shootout come Sunday afternoon. It’s going to be a tough game on both sides of the ball, so I think it is a smart decision to go with the Over in this game if you want to bring in some money this weekend. I’m pretty confident that these two teams will go well over 42 combined points this Sunday.