Here is who national experts are predicting will win Chiefs-Chargers game
By the end of Sunday, the Chiefs either will know their playoff opponent or if they’ll get some rest next week.
The Chiefs play host to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday and depending on what happens, they will be seeded second, third or fourth in the postseason. Fans undoubtedly will be keeping an eye on the Patriots-Dolphins game, which also kicks off at noon. A Patriots loss and Chiefs win will give KC the No. 2 seed and a bye in the playoffs.
Fifty experts from around the nation made predictions for Sunday’s game, and they like the Chiefs’ chances of winning. Here are the picks and what they’re saying about the game, which will be broadcast on CBS (Ch. 5):
A 31-21 Chiefs win is the prediction from Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com. Here is an excerpt of what he wrote: “No team has looked readier for the season to end than the Chargers over the last two weeks. No team is peaking with the playoffs approaching to a higher degree than the Chiefs over the last month. That should result in a blowout Sunday, although I’d never count Philip Rivers out when it comes to creating one last “What the ...” result in what could be his final game as a Charger.”
All of the eight CBS Sports experts predicted a Chiefs victory: Ryan Wilson, Jason La Canfora, John Breech, Dave Richard, Pete Prisco, Jared Dubin, Jamey Eisenberg and Will Brinson. Prisco predicted a 27-15 Chiefs win. Here is part of what wrote: “The Chargers had a chance against the Chiefs in Mexico City, but this will be different. This will be ugly. The Chiefs defense is much improved. Chiefs roll.”
The Chiefs were the pick for both Mike Florio and Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. Smith forecast a 30-20 score. This is what he wrote: “The Chargers are limping toward the finish of a disappointing season, while the Chiefs are trying to peak at the right time.” Florio predicted a 27-17 score and wrote: “The Chiefs still have an outside shot at the No. 2 seed; more importantly, they could still slide to No. 3 and face a very good Bills team in the wild-card round. That’s reason enough to not falter at home to a hopeless Chargers team.”
The Chiefs will win 28-20 writes Tadd Haislop of the Sporting News. This is a snippet of what he wrote: “While Philip Rivers and Co. would love to end the year (and potentially his Chargers career) on a high note, the late-season rise of Kansas City’s defense combined with the continued scoring prowess of its offense will be too much for Los Angeles to overcome.”
The seven experts from USA Today picked the Chiefs: Jarrett Bell (31-20 final score), Nate Davis (27-20), Jori Epstein (31-27), Mike Jones (30-24), Mike Middlehurst-Schwartz (31-17), Lorenzo Reyes (29-17) and Tom Schad (30-20).
All eight Pro Football Focus experts picked the Chiefs: Neil Hornsby, Bruce Gradkowski, Jeff Ratcliffe, Solomon Wilcots, Sam Monson, Nathan Jahnke, Austin Gayle and Steve Palazzolo.
All eight experts from SB Nation are picking the Chiefs: Christian D’Andrea, Sarah Hardy, Morgan Moriarty, Geoff Schwartz, Adam Stites, Stephen White, James Brady and Patrick Holloway.
Each of the six Sports Illustrated Monday Morning Quarterback writers picked the Chiefs: Kayln Kahler, Mitch Goldich, Andrew Brandt, Bette Marston, Connor Orr and Jenny Vrentas.
All nine experts at ESPN see the Chiefs winning: Matt Bowen, Mike Clay, Mike Golic, Louis Riddick, Jason Reid, Trey Wingo, Mina Kimes, Seth Wickersham, Dan Graziano and Kevin Seifert.
This story was originally published December 29, 2019 at 7:39 AM.
