The San Diego Chargers could make things really interesting in the AFC West with a win in Week 8. The only problem is the fact that they will have to take on the Denver Broncos on the road.
The Chargers are coming off of a rather impressive victory against the Atlanta Falcons. Not only was that contest played on the road for San Diego, but the Chargers won in overtime. Not to mention, they were down by 17 points at one time .
Meanwhile, the Broncos knocked off Brock Osweiler and the Houston Texans in revenge fashion by the score of 27-9 in their last outing.
In case you are wondering if Denver and San Diego have already played each other this season; well, they have. The two teams met up in Week 6. In that battle, the Chargers came out on top by the score of 21-13. While San Diego still has a lot of work to do if it plans on winning the AFC West, sweeping Denver during the regular season would be quite the feat.
Nonetheless, the Broncos enter this contest with a 5-2 record, and they are also ranked No. 3 in ESPN ‘s power rankings. The Chargers have a record of 3-4. They come in at No. 14 in the power rankings.
Before this game goes down on Sunday, let’s drop some bold predictions.
Emmanuel Sanders And Demaryius Thomas Combine For 250-Plus Yards
Can you imagine how incredible Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas’ stats would be if a guy like Drew Brees were throwing the ball to them? No, that is not a knock on Trevor Siemian because Siemian is only 24-years-old and has been wowing fans all season long. Brees has just been that impressive in 2016.
Nonetheless, Sanders and Thomas are a lethal duo — to say the least — and they will rack up 250-plus yards against the Chargers. Currently, Sanders has 499 receiving yards and Thomas has 456.
It doesn’t hurt that San Diego is allowing 276.3 passing yards per game , which is 24th-best in the NFL. For all it’s worth, this team is also allowing 26.4 points per contest , which doesn’t exactly scream elite defense.
Philip Rivers Has A Nightmare Outing
Philip Rivers is more than capable of torching any defense in the NFL. With that said, Denver has one of the best defenses in the league. Not only is Denver’s defense allowing 16.7 points per game , but it is also only giving up 175 passing yards per game , which is the best mark in the NFL.
While the Broncos did go down against the Chargers in the first meeting of the season, Rivers only had 178 passing yards and a touchdown in that game, but he also had a grand total of zero interceptions. Look for the Broncos’ defense to get to Rivers in Week 8 and don’t be surprised when Von Miller & Co. sack the quarterback early and often.
With all of that said, look for Rivers to have a couple of turnovers this time around, and it also wouldn’t be surprising if he didn’t break the 250-yard mark.
Denver Wins By Two Touchdowns
As long as Denver’s defense continues to do what it does best, which is be stingy in the points department (among other things), and Siemian doesn’t rack up the turnovers (he only has three interceptions in 2016), the Broncos should have no problem winning. Taking that a step further, it isn’t completely out of the question to say Denver will beat the Chargers by at least two touchdowns.
The defending champs have more than enough weapons on both sides of the ball to not only win the AFC West but to capture yet another Super Bowl victory.
The Broncos are no longer perfect at home thanks to a loss to the Atlanta Falcons in Week 5, but Denver is still a rather tough environment to play in. San Diego, you have been warned.
[Featured Image by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images]
