San Diego Chargers desperate for a win against the Tennessee Titans
A desperate San Diego Chargers team will be looking to get a much needed win against the Tennessee Titans, who will be taking their AFC South leading 5-2 record into San Diego looking to win their fourth straight on Sunday, 31 October.
Previous meetings and recent games
The last time these two teams met was last season, when the Chargers were riding a nine-game winning streak en route to winning the AFC West. They blew the Titans out of the water that day with a score of 42-17.
The Tennessee Titans have done a tremendous job keeping pace in one of the NFL's toughest divisions, the AFC South. They're currently 5-2 and are coming off a big 37-19 win against the Philadelphia Eagles last Sunday.
Statistically speaking, the Chargers should be 7-0. Instead they are a paltry 2-5, and are in need of 2009-like win streak if they hope to have any chance of making the play-offs.
It's shocking to think how a team with the NFL's number one overall offence, and number one defence, should be struggling for their play-off lives. The only bright spot for the Chargers is the fact that they play in the AFC West, which has only one team
over .500 – the Kansas City Chiefs (4-2).
If the Chargers can manage a win this Sunday it will be huge, as whoever wins the AFC West might only need eight wins to do it.
How they match up
Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers leads the league in passing yards with 2344 and is on pace to eclipse Dan Marino's single season record of 5084 yards.
Vince Young, who's been recovering from injury, may be ready to go against the Chargers, but Kerry Collins was effective in relief last week. The Titans will also enter their bye week next week, which could be a factor in determining who coach Jeff Fisher
will decide to start come game time.
One of the reasons why Collins was so effective last week was the outstanding performance of wide receiver Kenny Britt who caught seven passes for 225 yards and three touchdowns.
As always, the Titans still possess one of the most feared running backs in the league in Chris Johnson, who is currently third in the NFL in rushing and has 662 yards along with seven touchdowns.
Besides Philip Rivers leading the way for the Chargers on offence, San Diego also have tight end Antonio Gates who, at 30 years old, has showed no signs of slowing down and is tied for the league lead with 8 touchdown catches.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Chargers have given up less yards, but have surrendered 32 more points than the Titans. Both the Titans and Chargers are tied for the league lead in sacks with 25.
What to expect
It's do or die time for the Chargers who, if they can't turn stats into wins, could find themselves out of play-off contention.
There's also a lot at stake for the Titans as the Colts and Texans, the other two AFC South teams in close contention, play each other on Monday night. A win for Tennessee will put them in the lead of a two-horse race with whoever wins on Monday.
It won't be easy, but the Chargers should get a much needed 27-20 win.
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