Here is who national experts are predicting will win KC Chiefs-LA Chargers game
The Chiefs will look to add to one of the most amazing stats in the NFL on Sunday when the Chargers come to Arrowhead Stadium.
Since 2015, the Chiefs have a 31-5 record against AFC West foes, an astonishing .861 winning percentage. The team said every other NFL team has at least 10 divisional losses in that span.
The Chiefs are 10-2 against the Chargers in that time, and one of those losses came last season when Kansas City rested most of its starters in a Week 17 game.
Can the Chiefs continue that amazing domination? Here is what 62 national experts are saying about the game, which kicks off at noon and will be broadcast on KCTV (Ch. 5).
Each of the eight CBS Sports writers believe the Chiefs will win: Pete Prisco, Jason La Canfora, Dave Richard, Will Brinson, Jared Dubin, Jamey Eisenberg: John Breech and Ryan Wilson. Prisco predicted a 30-27 score. This is an excerpt of what he wrote: “The Chiefs defense looked bad against the Ravens. The Chargers have played Patrick Mahomes well in recent years and I think that plays out in this one. The Chargers will keep it close, but Kansas City wins it late.”
The Chiefs will prevail, two Pro Football Talk writers say. Mike Florio predicts a 31-283 victory. He wrote: “ Patrick Mahomes will lead the Chiefs to a victory, but a suspect Kansas City defense will give up plenty of passing yards to Justin Herbert..” Michael David Smith predicted a 34-28 final. He wrote in part: “The loser lands in last place. Kansas City should win, but the Chargers should keep it interesting.”
The Chiefs will win 34-30 says Yardbarker’s Chris Mueller. This is an excerpt of what he wrote: “Patrick Mahomes threw his first career interception in September in Week 2, and it opened the door for a surprising Ravens comeback. It was one of the few times that Mahomes tried to do something absurd and actually had it blow up in his face. Their star quarterback’s sloppy turnover is hardly the Chiefs’ biggest worry, though. Kansas City can’t stop anyone from running the football.”
A 36-31 Chiefs win is the prediction from Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com. This is part of what he wrote: “Justin Herbert and Patrick Mahomes are the two quarterbacks I want facing third-and-long. They’re the two quarterbacks I want if my team is trailing. Combine those traits with a Chiefs defense giving up 6 yards per carry and over 10 yards per attempt through the air, and there’s a recipe here for another heart-stopping, high-scoring finish.”
The Chiefs will cover the spread while winning, says the Washington Post’s Neil Greenberg. Here is an excerpt of what he wrote: “(T)he Chiefs’ offense is scoring 13 more points than expected in 2021 after taking into account the down, distance and field position of each offensive play. That’s nearly a field goal more than the Los Angeles Rams, the next best offensive team according to that metric.”
All seven writers at USA Today think the Chiefs will win: Jarrett Bell (33-27 final score), Nate Davis (34-30), Jori Epstein (31-28), Mike Freeman (38-17), Mike Jones (33-25), Mike Middlehurst-Schwartz (31-28) and Lorenzo Reyes (32-24).
A 36-29 Chiefs win is the prediction from Bill Bender of the Sporting News. This is part of what he wrote: “Justin Herbert and Patrick Mahomes are among the top-five passers through two weeks, but Herbert has two TDs and three interceptions. The Chiefs’ defense tightens up late in a shootout.”
All 11 pundits at ESPN think the Chiefs will prevail: Emmanuel Acho, Matt Bowen, Domonique Foxworth, Rob Ninkovich, Laura Rutledge, Seth Wickersham, Damien Woody, Mike Clay, Jeremy Fowler, Dan Graziano and Kevin Seifert.
The four Chiefs writers for The Star believe Kansas City will win: Blair Kerkhoff, Herbie Teope, Vahe Gregorian and Sam Mellinger.
Each of the eight writers at the Athletic picked the Chiefs: Michael-Shawn Dugar, Mark Kaboly, Tashan Reed, Ted Nguyen, Chris Burke, Jay Morrison, Katherine Terrell and Nick Kosmider.
The Chiefs are the pick from Audacy’s five writers: Jesse Pantuosco, John Healy, Jordan Cohn, Tim Kelly and Dan Mennella.
A Chiefs victory is the prediction from all three Athlon Sports writers: Rob Doster, Bryan Fischer and Ben Weinrib.
Each of the 10 members of the Dallas Morning-News picked the Chiefs: Tim Cowlishaw, Newy Scruggs, Calvin Watkins, David Moore, Dana Larson, Jean-Jacques Taylor, Craig Miller, Kevin Sherrington, Damon Marx and Michael Gehlken.
