The San Francisco 49ers and San Diego Chargers will meet on Thursday Night Football in a game that has major playoff implications for each team. The 49ers stand one game behind the St. Louis Rams and Seattle Seahawks in the NFC West while the Chargers are also a game behind in the AFC West.
Thursday Night Football, 49ers Vs. Chargers: NFL Playoff Picture Will Be Affected
The Chargers are favored by nine points and there's no reason they shouldn't win this one with ease. The Chargers are simply the better team. They're the third ranked offense and 11th ranked defense winning five of their last six games. San Diego dominated the division leader Chiefs, 31-0, last weekend and looked unstoppable in every phase of the game.
After starting the year 0-5, the 49ers have strung together a few wins including last week’s 40-21 victory over the Seahawks. The 49ers don’t do any one thing particularly well with the 26th ranked offense and 18th ranked defense but they do have some play makers on both sides of the ball.
A victory here is necessary for the Chargers if they’re going to stay in the AFC West race. They’re one game behind the Chiefs so more than likely they’re going to have to run the table and hope the Chiefs slipup to have a chance in the division. There are plenty of scenarios but if it comes down to a tiebreaker the Chargers have a few advantages over the Chiefs. The bottomline, though, is that they need to win out.
The 49ers are just 5-8 but stand one game out of first place in the NFC West. On Sunday, the Rams play the Chiefs and the Seahawks play the Falcons so it's possible San Francisco can catch up in the NFC West.
The winner tonight will stay in the playoff race and the loser will face some serious issues in their division. The Chargers are heavy favorites and they’re smart pick. To follow the game, check out Niners Nation and Bolts From The Blue.
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