Monday Night Football: Chargers @ Colts

By Conor Perrett 

A week on, after being on the wrong side of the largest comeback in NFL history, the Indianapolis Colts host another playoff challenger in the LA Chargers. 

The LAC have put themselves in a strong position to clinch a playoff spot this season, thanks to some close wins over the past few weeks. With an improved defence over the last two weeks, they will try carry into Monday Night Football.

Indianapolis Colts (4-9-1)

Power Rankings – 30th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 32nd, Defence – 11th, ST – 19th: Overall – 31st

After suffering that embarrassing defeat last week, Matt Ryan has been benched for a second time this season. Ryan was given a second chance when the new interim coach Jeff Saturday came in, but after his second half performance that saw the Colts offence fall off a cliff and Nick Foles has been given the opportunity to start.

To be fair to Indy, they are trying everything to try to find some sort of spark in a lost season. It seems clear some major changes will happen in the off-season, with a new coaching staff most likely being in place. They also have a top five pick on the horizon in the draft. 

The Colts defence has been the only positive on display this season. Despite missing superstar linebacker Shaquille Leonard for the majority of the season. Their defensive line is one of their biggest positives and has been key to any sort of success they have.

Los Angeles Chargers (8-6)

Power Rankings – 11th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 24th, Defence – 17th, ST – 10th: Overall – 23rd

The Chargers have won three out of their past four games to improve to 8-6 on the season, with each of those wins coming by less than a touchdown. It looked bleak for a period of time that this team would miss the postseason again, but they have put the odds in their favour over the last month.

The Bolts offence has been a bit of a disappointment this season, but after a slow start, Justin Herbert has started to perform to what we know he can over the past few weeks. He has topped the 310-yard mark in the past three games, while throwing zero interceptions in three of his past four starts. 

It is no surprise that things started clicking with the return of wide-receivers Keelan Allen and Mike Willaims. 

Los Angeles are starting to peak at the right time, as they can begin to get ready for the playoffs if they get past the Colts tonight. With three games left against teams with bottom seven records in the league, there’s a high chance they can improve their position in a stacked AFC.

Prediction

The Chargers enter the game as -4.5 favourites, despite being the away team. 

Indy’s offence is unpredictable with Foles now taking the lead, as it will be his first start of the season. It won’t be an easy matchup for him, with the Chargers defence ranking third in defensive DVOA over the past two weeks. 

On paper it’s easy to see why LA are favourites, but there’s always a chance the Colts can spring a Christmas surprise. While the end result is what matters, you have to remember Indy put themselves in a position to be up by 33 points. The  defence and special teams played amazing in that first half and they just lost it  towards the end from the glass half full point of view. 

Everything is just going right for the Chargers right now and it would be a shock if a four-win Colts team were the ones to stop them. 

Chargers 27-20 Colts

Monday Night Football: Chargers @ Colts

By Conor Perrett 

A week on, after being on the wrong side of the largest comeback in NFL history, the Indianapolis Colts host another playoff challenger in the LA Chargers. 

The LAC have put themselves in a strong position to clinch a playoff spot this season, thanks to some close wins over the past few weeks. With an improved defence over the last two weeks, they will try carry into Monday NNight Football.

Indianapolis Colts (4-9-1)

Power Rankings – 30th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 32nd, Defence – 11th, ST – 19th: Overall – 31st

After suffering that embarrassing defeat last week, Matt Ryan has been benched for a second time this season. Ryan was given a second chance when the new interim coach Jeff Saturday came in, but after his second half performance that saw the Colts offence fall off a cliff and Nick Foles has been given the opportunity to start.

To be fair to Indy, they are trying everything to try to find some sort of spark in a lost season. It seems clear some major changes will happen in the off-season, with a new coaching staff most likely being in place. They also have a top five pick on the horizon in the draft. 

The Colts defence has been the only positive on display this season. Despite missing superstar linebacker Shaquille Leonard for the majority of the season. Their defensive line is one of their biggest positives and has been key to any sort of success they have.

Los Angeles Chargers (8-6)

Power Rankings – 11th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 24th, Defence – 17th, ST – 10th: Overall – 23rd

The Chargers have won three out of their past four games to improve to 8-6 on the season, with each of those wins coming by less than a touchdown. It looked bleak for a period of time that this team would miss the postseason again, but they have put the odds in their favour over the last month.

The Bolts offence has been a bit of a disappointment this season, but after a slow start, Justin Herbert has started to perform to what we know he can over the past few weeks. He has topped the 310-yard mark in the past three games, while throwing zero interceptions in three of his past four starts. 

It is no surprise that things started clicking with the return of wide-receivers Keelan Allen and Mike Willaims. 

Los Angeles are starting to peak at the right time, as they can begin to get ready for the playoffs if they get past the Colts tonight. With three games left against teams with bottom seven records in the league, there’s a high chance they can improve their position in a stacked AFC.

Prediction

The Chargers enter the game as -4.5 favourites, despite being the away team. 

Indy’s offence is unpredictable with Foles now taking the lead, as it will be his first start of the season. It won’t be an easy matchup for him, with the Chargers defence ranking third in defensive DVOA over the past two weeks. 

On paper it’s easy to see why LA are favourites, but there’s always a chance the Colts can spring a Christmas surprise. While the end result is what matters, you have to remember Indy put themselves in a position to be up by 33 points. The  defence and special teams played amazing in that first half and they just lost it  towards the end from the glass half full point of view. 

Everything is just going right for the Chargers right now and it would be a shock if a four-win Colts team were the ones to stop them. 

Chargers 27-20 Colts