Monday Night Football will be treated to an NFC West rivalry match-up as the San Diego Chargers (4-2) visit the improving Kansas City Chiefs (3-3). The Chiefs will be looking to avenge a loss to the Chargers back in week 3.
Both teams have had completely different starts to the season. San Diego find themselves on top of the NFC West after an inconsistent start, while the Chiefs have turned their season around after losing two key players in Jamal Charles and Eric Berry to find themselves riding a three game win streak.
The Chiefs’ recent victories have been due to more consistency from quarter back, Matt Cassel. Since the three losses, Cassel has a touchdown to interception ratio of 5-2, yet in the first three games he was 3-6. Cassel’s decision making has improved and his leadership skills are more evident. The former Patriot has also developed a strong relationship with free agent acquisition, Steve Breaston. Breaston has done a great job of establishing himself as the #2 wide receiver, alongside Dwayne Bowe. Cassel will have to rely upon Breaston due to a limited running game.
The San Diego Chargers on the other hand have a good start and are coming off a bye week. Phillip Rivers had led his team to a 4-2 start, however costly interceptions have stunned many around the league.
Phillip Rivers has already thrown seven interceptions in only six games; this includes two big interceptions two weeks ago against the New York Jets where the Chargers squandered a 21-10 lead. On top of River’s mistakes, Ryan Matthews and Mike Tolbert have combined for three fumbles.
THOUGHTS
The bye week for San Diego came at the perfect time following the tough loss to the Jets. The Chargers have many key injuries so an extra week off will help heal some of those. Rivers will also have spent the week studying film and be raring to go and improve himself. He knows that if he can find his rhythm then he is one of the best quarter backs in the game.
San Diego still has a lot of players hurt. Antonio Gates and Ryan Matthews are probable, Malcolm Floyd is questionable and Matthew Tolbert is doubtful. This is a big problem for San Diego, mostly because it will allow Kansas City to focus purely on Vincent Jackson. In saying that though, Kansas City do not have anyone who can keep V-Jax quiet for the whole game so be sure to see Rivers and Jackson link up vertically a few times.
Kansas City will need to run the ball effectively. The Kansas City back field is littered with ineffective runners, however the emergence of Jackie Battle in the past two games has given them some life. Battle over the past two games is averaging over 5.5 yards per carry, the Chargers are 21st against the run. If Cassel, Bow and Breaston want to be effective then the Chiefs are going to have to use Battle effectively to keep San Diego guessing. If the Chiefs can make the Chargers wary of the run then they have a real shot to pull of the upset.
This match-up presents a good chance for both sets of fans. This will be an opportunity for fans to really see if Kansas City has turned a corner or that their three victories were due to poor opponents. San Diego fans will be interested to see how the bye week has helped Rivers; they will be hoping to see Rivers on target even if injuries plague the Charger’s offense. Unless the Chiefs can run the ball well, I see the Chargers winning by at least a touchdown.
By Christopher Doerr
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