Los Angeles Chargers vs New England Patriots

New England has a team it actually has a chance of beating this week as the Los Angeles Chargers have lost three consecutive games and are essentially out of the playoff race. The Chargers are 2-5-1 ATS their past eight games and coach Brandon Staley is on the hot seat and doesn't have seven Super Bowl winners that Bill Belichick has to back him up. Justin Herbert has been plagued by dropped passes by his receivers and the team overall has underacheived in almost every department. The Chargers have lost 12 of 13 meetings at New England, including the past five and Herbert is 0-2 against Belichick's defenses with two TDs and four interceptions. The Patriots defense is able to keep their team in the game and opponents have scored only 13.3 points on average their past three games. New England is 42-19 ATS after allowing fewer than 250 total yards its previous game and the Chargers are 1-5-1 ATS against the AFC. Take the Patriots as a Max Play.

Los Angeles was embarrassed, 34-6, at Baltimore, which was a tough spot in the schedule after the Chargers had an exhausting, 47-42, win against Cleveland, and then they had to play three time zones away the following week. The good news for the Chargers is they have had two weeks to regroup following a bye week and are looking to improve on their 4-2 record both straight up and ATS. Justin Herbert did not have one of his best days against the Ravens, completing 22 of 39 for 195 yards, but on the season he has 14 touchdown passes with 4 interceptions and a 65.4% completion rate. The posted total is higher than it should be as it reflects the Patriots' 54-13 rout of the Jets last week. New England had averaged just 20.8 points its previous six games while the Chargers are 5-1 UNDER this season, and New England is 7-1 UNDER its past eight games following a win (5-1 UNDER its last six road games). The Patriots are 1-9-1 ATS after a win and 2-5 ATS their last seven road games. Los Angeles is 8-2 ATS its last 10 games overall. Play the Chargers and the UNDER.

New England did pull out a win against Arizona when Nick Folk kicked a 50-yard field goal as time expired, but Cam Newton still struggled, completing only 9 of 18 for 84 yards with two interceptions, and the Patriots finished with only 179 total yards of offense. New England is #20 in the NFL in yards gained per game and #27 in scoring with 20.8 points per game. The Pats are 1-7-1 ATS their last nine games following a win and 0-6-1 ATS after an ATS win. This is the first meeting since the Chargers lost 41-28 to the Patriots in the 2018 playoffs. Los Angeles has lost several close games this season, and it comes off a 27-17 defeat at Buffalo last week. Chargers QB Justin Herbert finished 32 of 51 for 316 yards to bring his season total to 3,016 yards, and he and Pat Mahomes are the only players to top 3,000 yards in their first 10 career starts. The rookie hasn't had much to show for it as far as the win column, but that is due to change as he has been much more effective than Newton. New England has covered just one of its last five road games and it is 2-6-1 ATS its last nine December games. Play the Chargers.

The Los Angeles Chargers appear to arguably be the best team in the AFC, but they're still a medium-sized underdog due to New England's history overall and on its home field. However, the Patriots are not as dominant compared to previous years and they are vulnerable after losing to Miami and Pittsburgh before beating weak competition in the Bills and Jets. The Chargers are a miraculous 8-1 straight-up on the road and the only loss was to their crosstown rival Rams. That is astonishing for a West Coast, warm-weather team and the Chargers won't be bothered by playing at Foxboro. The OVER is 8-0-1 in New England's last nine divisional playoff games and 5-1 OVER their last six playoff games overall. The Chargers are 5-1 ATS their last six playoff road games and 35-17-2 ATS their last 54 road games overall. Philip Rivers is in his 15th season and has seen just about everything and one of the few quarterbacks who can come close to matching up with Tom Brady - at least in experience. Rivers threw for 4,308 yards and 32 touchdowns while completing 68.3 percent of his passes in the regular season. The Chargers were ninth in yards allowed compared to #21 for the Patriots. Los Angeles averaged 26.8 points and the Patriots scored 27.2 points per game. The weather forecast calls for a high of around 30 degrees, which is about as much as you can hope for this time of year. Take the Chargers and the OVER.