Two teams that were in the playoffs last season and have struggled over the past month meet tonight in Los Angeles when the Chargers host the Minnesota Vikings. Opening with three straight wins that included a victory over the defending AFC Champion Kansas City Chiefs, Jim Harbaugh’s team appeared among the elite in the National Football League.
Not so much since.
Over their past four games the Chargers only win was a last second field goal that got them by the suspect Miami Dolphins. Their losses came against the New York Giants, Washington Commanders and Indianapolis Colts. The losses to Washington and Indianapolis were on the Chargers home field.
A week ago, Los Angeles was favored over the high-flying Colts and lost by two touchdowns. Tonight, they are favored over the visiting Vikings and there are a lot of good reasons to think this is where the Chargers get back on track. That would be for more certain if we were sure they have hit rock bottom.
But, being favored is not usually a sign of rock bottom.
Their opponent tonight, may also be at rock bottom. Last week, at home against the defending Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles, the Vikings lost by virtue of inept play in the redzone and a pick six that staked the Eagles to an early double-digit lead enroute to a six-point road win.
Both the Chargers and Vikings have had some injuries to key players. In August, the Chargers lost one of the best offensive linemen in the game, Rashawn Slater, to a season ending ruptured patellar tendon. Los Angeles also lost starting runningback Najee Harris for the season and was missing for a number of weeks one of their best defensive players, linebacker Khalil Mack.
The Vikings primary loss by injury is to the quarterback position. Their penciled-in season starter for the second straight year has spent more time rehabbing injuries than running the offense. The Vikings took J.J. McCarthy in the first-round last year and he missed his rookie season due to injury. His sophomore campaign has also seen him spend more time on the sideline nursing a high ankle sprain than time behind center.
In his place has been backup Carson Wentz, who has had signs of effectiveness and lapses that have cost Minnesota games. He is also nursing a sore shoulder that appears to have limited his effectiveness.
Last year, the Vikings lost only three regular season games when backup Sam Darnold stepped in for the injured McCarthy and revitalized his NFL career. This year, the Vikings have already lost as many games as they did all last season and tonight come in as a bet-against underdog to the Chargers.
In other words, neither of tonight’s combatants have had their seasons go the way they had hoped. The Vikings come into action having lost the three games this year that followed wins, and the Chargers are scuffling like a lower tier squad with setbacks in three of their most recent four games.
Maybe both these teams are at rock bottom and ready to make a surge. I just don’t know which one is more likely to emerge with a win tonight. Both have potential that has not been realized and while only 16% of NFL games have the straight-up winner lose by virtue of the point spread, I wouldn’t be surprised if Los Angeles was to fail by that measure tonight.
Laying 3½ points with a struggling Chargers team is too much to risk on the line. Taking a Vikings squad with a banged-up quarterback on a short week against a Chargers team looking to bounce back from last Sunday’s home loss appears no bargain.
For us, it is onward to Sunday.