Seattle at Los Angeles

Jim Harbaugh is back in the NFL and like his brother he likes to win in the preseason. Harbaugh had a 10-6 straight up and ATS record as coach of San Francisco from 2011-2014. Mike MacDonald has his first head coaching job after several years as a defensive assistant with Baltimore and one year with the Michigan Wolverines. Seattle had a history of preseason success under Pete Carroll, but we'll have to wait and see how MacDonald handles it. Harbaugh will want to make a good first impression in front of the home fans. The backups behind Justin Herbert are Easton Stick, Max Duggan and Casey Bauman. Stick started four games for Los Angeles in 2023 and completed 64.0 percent of his passes for 1,133 yards and three TDs and an interception. Duggan and Bauman have no NFL experience and Stick should get the majority of the snaps in this game and Herbert is recovering from a foot injury. Seattle has Sam Howell and P.J. Walker backing up Geno Smith. Howell has been inconsistent in training camp and Walker has started nine games in 21 NFL appearances the past four years. The Chargers averaged 24.7 points in the 2023 preseason and two of three went OVER. Harbaugh will look to put up some points to excite the home crowd in his first game back. Take the Chargers and the OVER.