The Chargers garner their second primetime appearance this week with a Monday Night Football matchup against the Broncos.
Denver has gotten off to a slow start with Russell Wilson and Nathaniel Hackett at the helm, opening the possibility that Los Angeles moves to 4-2 on the season.
Here are four reasons to be optimistic that the Chargers come out on top.
Injury luck
The Chargers seem to be on the way up as far as injuries go, with Keenan Allen again listed as day-to-day. Donald Parham Jr. made his season debut, while Trey Pipkins looks like he won’t miss any time, despite a sprained MCL last Sunday. Meanwhile, The Broncos put three starters on injured reserve this week: left tackle Garett Bolles, cornerback Ronald Darby, and long snapper Jacob Bobenmoyer. LA is, of course, missing the likes of Rashawn Slater and Joey Bosa, but the Broncos are also missing Javonte Williams, Randy Gregory, and Tim Patrick. Justin Simmons, Greg Dulcich, and Michael Ojemudia are eligible to return this week, but some rust on the defensive side and working new players into the fold on offense could lead to more mistakes than normal.
Offensive disjointment
Even without the injuries, Denver has struggled to get on the same page on offense. The Broncos seem to still be looking for an identity on that side of the ball, especially after Williams’ torn ACL. Courtland Sutton seems to be the only receiver with consistent chemistry with Wilson, while Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler have taken a bit of a backseat to the tight ends. Wilson is throwing over the middle a bit more than typical, but still not as often as he probably should be with the skill position personnel. Go back and watch Wilson skip over a wide-open Hamler against the Colts last week with a chance to win the game. The Chargers defense is good enough to prevent Denver from getting things in place this week, and there’s little reason to suggest the Broncos are on the upswing quite yet.
Strength on strength
The Chargers are 12th in pass defense DVOA but 22nd in run defense DVOA, which in an injury-free world would cause some legitimate concern around Javonte Williams and Melvin Gordon on the docket. Instead, it’s Gordon and Latavius Murray, a duo currently sitting at 23rd in DVOA on the season. Per the stat, Denver is a better passing team than rushing one, at 21st in pass DVOA on the season. That means the gameplan should be skewed more toward keeping Wilson’s downturn going rather than the rush defense-focused one they had against Cleveland and Nick Chubb. That plays into LA’s hands by allowing them to lean on the strength of their defense: the secondary.
Game management
Say what you want about Brandon Staley’s decision to go for it on fourth and two late in the game against Cleveland, but there’s no denying that Nathaniel Hackett has been a worse decision-maker as a rookie head coach. Denver hired Jerry Rosburg as a game management specialist after two games, but the changes have been less than palpable. Hackett has the unenviable task of calling offensive plays while also managing the game, a tall task for many coaches and especially rookie ones. The former Packers offensive coordinator has become somewhat infamous for his decision-making, which tells me there’s a blunder to capitalize on coming up on Monday night.