After finding every possible way to give games away in the first part of the season, the San Diego Chargers have reversed the trend with their first two-game winning streak in nearly two years. They overcame a 17-point deficit to knock off Atlanta in overtime last week for a rare road win. Now, oozing with confidence and their season headed in an upward direction, the Chargers go for the season sweep of the Denver Broncos when the AFC West rivals clash in Week 8.
This matchup in Week 8 of the regular season will take place on Sunday, October 30, 2016, at 4:05 p.m. ET at Sports Authority Field.
Odds Analysis
With the Broncos playing on Monday night, the spread and total have yet to hit the board. It’s safe to assume the Broncos will be the favorite, laying in the neighborhood of six points. San Diego has made its backers plenty of coin this season with a 5-2 ATS record and the close games are something familiar to this group. San Diego has gone 3-1 ATS in its last four visits to the Mile High City.
Injury Report
Hunter Henry – The rookie tight end has been quite a find for the Chargers, but he experienced concussion-like symptoms following the Atlanta game and entered the league’s protocol putting his status in doubt. Henry has assumed the role of Antonio Gates in the offense and is the team’s fourth-leading receiver. He has a team-best three touchdown grabs and would be a significant loss against the Broncos fierce pass rush.
Brandon Marshall – Denver’s starting linebacker left Monday night’s game in the second half and didn’t return. The extent of the injury isn’t known, but Marshall is a key piece of the Broncos defense and the unit wouldn’t be as strong against the run without him.
Last Meeting
The Broncos would like nothing more than to squash San Diego’s surge up the AFC West standings and deliver a little payback for a loss to the Chargers just over two weeks ago. It was Denver’s second straight defeat and raised plenty of questions about whether the Broncos were capable of defending their Super Bowl title behind an unproven quarterback. San Diego also ended a 10-game losing streak to AFC West opponents. But the Broncos had their chances in the game and failed to capitalize. They had a touchdown called back on a penalty, committed two turnovers, and gifted two points with a holding penalty in the end zone.
This game takes on a little more meaning for Gary Kubiak, who missed the last meeting while suffering from migraine headaches. In his stead, special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis served as acting coach. Denver’s defense played well, like they always do, limiting the Chargers to just 265 yards, and a quick glance at the stat sheet gives a different version of the actual outcome. With Kubiak back on the sidelines, the Broncos ended their two-game slide with a Monday night win over Atlanta and played a much crisper game. Expect the same on Sunday.
Free ATS Pick
Despite all the injuries and the losses that mounted in a variety of ways earlier in the year, the Chargers are feeling pretty good about their situation following back-to-back wins. They head to Denver with plenty of confidence and knowing they just knocked off the defending champs in Week 6. That win snapped a four-game slide to the Broncos and was just San Diego’s second win in the past 10 series meetings. The Chargers have been a resilient group this year and the defense has played well lately. Though they allowed 30 points to the Falcons, the Chargers stiffened in the second half, giving up just a field goal. That effort allowed Philip Rivers and the offense to overcome a 17-point deficit to get the win.
As much as I want to pick San Diego, the odds are not in their favor. They haven’t been a good road team and the Broncos are nearly unbeatable in their own yard. Plus, the Broncos remember their visit to San Diego and how poorly they played. I’m still not convinced Trevor Siemian can lead this team to a title, but as long as he doesn’t screw things up, the defense should take care of the rest. The Chargers are used to playing close games and this one should be no different. Take San Diego and the points in what will be a close, low-scoring affair.
NFL Odds: Broncos 21, Chargers 18
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