The NFL knew what it was doing when it flexed the Denver Broncos vs. the Los Angeles Chargers into Thursday Night Football for Week 16. NFL fans will now get a key game in the playoff race on national television.
The Broncos had been stuck in the No. 7 position for weeks but things took a big turn this past Sunday as the Broncos rallied to beat the Indianapolis Colts while the Chargers were dominated on their own field by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That moved the Broncos into the six slot while dropping the Chargers to No. 7.
The Chargers will need this win more than the Broncos on Thursday night, but with a win, the Broncos can clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2015. How do the experts see this game going? The Chargers did beat the Broncos back in Week 6, do they get the season sweep?
Denver Broncos vs. Los Angeles Chargers Week 16 expert picks
John Breech, CBS Sports: Chargers 20, Broncos 17
Breech: “This feels like a coin flip game, but since no one carries around coins any more, I have nothing to flip, so I’m going to have to trust my gut here. Since Week 8, the Amazon game has been a disaster for road teams. Playing on a short week is difficult enough, but doing it late in the season is even harder, which might explain why road teams are 1-7 over the past eight weeks in the Amazon game. And some of those upsets have been big, like the Texans losing to the Jets in Week 9 and the Steelers losing to the Browns in Week 12.
The Chargers winning this game and then inexplicably losing one of their final two games — they play the Patriots and Raiders — would be the most Chargers thing ever, so that’s what I’m going to assume happens.”
Vinnie Iyer, The Sporting News: Chargers 22, Broncos 17
Iyer: “The Chargers have gone cold at the wrong time with their offense and defense suddenly falling apart, leading to a lack of complementary football that had them rolling earlier in the season. Jim Harbaugh gets a correction here against a division foe that has won four straight games but has gotten sloppier of late, too. Los Angeles jumps Denver again in the 6-7 AFC wild-card pecking order.
Bill Bender, The Sporting News: Broncos 24, Chargers 21
Bender: “The Chargers are 1-3 S/U in their past four games, and the season-ending knee injury to JK Dobbins continues to loom large. Los Angeles has averaged just 66.2 rushing yards per game through this stretch. Denver averages 86.5 rushing yards through a four-game win streak, but the defense is creating more turnovers. That could key an upset here.”
Jeremy Cluff, Arizona Republic: Chargers 23, Broncos 20
Cluff: “These teams are in great position for the NFL playoffs, but seeding could be on the line at SoFi Stadium. The Broncos are the hotter team, but the Chargers are desperate after two straight losses.”
All of these experts see the game close and it could come down to the final possession, but the Chargers are the team that most of them are siding with.
Kickoff is scheduled for 6:15 pm MT and the game will be televised on Amazon Prime. Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit will call the action. Making their second appearance on Thursday Night Football this year, the Broncos will become the first team in nearly 100 years to play two Thursday night games in one season.
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