San Diego @ Kansas City preview
GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium
Last Meeting ( Nov 22, 2015 ) Kansas City 33, San Diego 3
The Kansas City Chiefs look to continue their march toward completing an historic turnaround and earn a seventh consecutive victory when they host the woeful San Diego Chargers on Sunday. The Chiefs need a win to keep pace in the AFC wild-card race as they seek to become the first team in 45 years to reach the playoffs after a 1-5 start.
The Chiefs aren’t just winning, but winning big – only one of their six straight victories have come by single digits and they’ve won their last five by an average of 20.6 points. “We’re on a mission,” Kansas City wide receiver Jeremy Maclin told reporters after catching nine passes for 95 yards and two touchdowns in a 34-20 win at Oakland last week. Kansas City’s winning streak has included a 33-3 drubbing of San Diego three weeks ago in which the Chargers managed only 201 total yards, their lowest amount since Week 9 of last season. Their offense wasn’t much better last week, mustering only 272 total yards and committing three turnovers in a 17-3 loss to Denver.
TV: 1 p.m ET, CBS. LINE: Chiefs -10. O/U: 45
ABOUT THE CHARGERS (3-9): San Diego has lost seven of its last eight, though three of those defeats have come by four points or fewer. The biggest issue on offense is an inability to run the ball effectively, as the Chargers rank 30th in the league in rushing and have not topped 100 yards on the ground since Week 2. They’ve had a tough time stopping the run as well, giving up triple digits in four straight games and 10 of their last 11 - including a whopping 153 yards in Week 11 against the Chiefs.
ABOUT THE CHIEFS (7-5): Kansas City’s rebound is especially unexpected given that it coincided with star running back Jamaal Charles’ season-ending injury, but Charcandrick West has proven capable of carrying the load in the backfield. Alex Smith has been excellent at taking care of the ball, throwing only three interceptions against 14 touchdowns and developing a strong rapport with Maclin, who leads the team in receptions (66), receiving yards (867) and receiving touchdowns (five). The defense features a fierce pass rush but could play a second game without linebacker Justin Houston, who leads the team in sacks (7.5) and returned an interception by Philip Rivers for a touchdown in the last meeting.
EXTRA POINTS
1. Rivers needs 184 passing yards to surpass Joe Montana (40,551) for 15th place on the all-time list and 287 to become the fourth player in NFL history with seven or more 4,000-yard seasons.
2. Smith has attempted 305 consecutive passes without an interception, the third-longest streak in NFL history behind Tom Brady (358) and Bernie Kosar (308).
3. San Diego TE Antonio Gates has 15 career touchdown catches versus the Chiefs, his most against any opponent.
PREDICTION: Chiefs 27, Chargers 20