San Diego Chargers Experiencing Deja Vu After Week 16
Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
After a heart-stopping win against the San Francisco 49ers on Saturday night, the San Diego Chargers found themselves in a very similar situation to 2013. They needed at least one of two teams to lose, either the Pittsburgh Steelers or Baltimore Ravens, to have a chance at a playoff berth after next week. Fortunately for the Chargers, the Ravens were beaten fairly handily by the Houston Texans, which had many fans and players likening this season’s end to last season’s end.
The Chargers will head into another Week 17 matchup against their AFC West rival the Kansas City Chiefs, and, like last year, a win against the Chiefs will assure the Bolts of a playoff berth. If this situation sounds way to familiar to you it’s because it almost mirrors last seasons Week 17 matchup. The big difference is that the Chargers will play the Chiefs on the road, and the Chiefs won’t be sending their backups out on the field, backups who almost beat the Chargers last year in San Diego.
The Chiefs will still have something to play for in terms of the playoffs next week. At kickoff they will not know if other teams, like the Ravens or Bills, are in a position to end their hopes, and they should be motivated to beat the Bolts for a chance at the postseason. They will have the home crowd behind them, and head coach Andy Reid might choose to blackout the scoreboard to prevent a team letdown or distractions. All of this adds up to a likely hard-fought game between the two division foes.
The Chargers need to continue to employ the same momentum and roll they were on going into Week 17 last year. It was enough to get them over the hump, and they parlayed it into a road win in Cincinnati in the Wild Card round. If they are able to sneak into the playoffs next week as the sixth seed, they may in fact face the same team in the Cincinnati Bengals again, and you better believe if that happens, Charger fans and the team will be hoping for Deja Vu to strike again in 2014.
Jonathan George is an NFL writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @jonageorge. “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
New York Jets Should Target Jay Cutler
The New York Jets will most likely be in the market for a free agent veteran quarterback in 2015. Read why Jay Cutler would be the perfect fit for the Jets. Read More
Steelers Win and Lose in Week 17
The Pittsburgh Steelers clinched the AFC North title Sunday Night by defeating the Cincinnati Bengals. But they also lost a key component of their offense that could potentially be disastrous. Read More
5 Takeaways from Raiders' Week 17 Loss
The Broncos sent Oakland into the 2014 offseason with a whooping. Here are five takeaways from the Week 17 thrashing. Read More
Bell's Injury Could Spell End for Steelers
Steelers don't have a player to replace injured Le'Veon Bell. Read More
Falcons' Mike Smith Deserves to be Fired
Enough is enough already with Mike Smith and his head coaching tenure with the Atlanta Falcons. Read why he deserves to be fired. Read More
Ranking the 12 Head Coaches in 2015 NFL Playoffs
Heading into the 2015 NFL playoffs, who are the best coaches in the postseason? Read More
NFL Playoffs 2015: 15 Dream Super Bowl Matchups
Here's a look at the top 15 matchups from the NFL Playoffs 2015 that fans would love to see in Super Bowl XLIX. Read More
Dan Quinn Would Make 49ers Contenders Again
Dan Quinn can stay in NFC West and bring his current rivals back to NFC supremacy. Read More
5 Potential Replacements as 49ers' Head Coach
With Jim Harbaugh now out of the picture, what will the San Francisco 49ers do at head coach? Read More
Power Ranking The NFL Playoff Field
The NFL playoffs will get underway next weekend and there are plenty of intriguing matchups. Here are the power rankings for the playoff field. Read More
Has Suh Played Last Game as Lion After Stomp?
Ndamukong Suh proved why he is the dirtiest player in the league once again. Does he deserve a suspension? Read More
5 Reasons Why Chargers Missed 2015 Playoffs
There’s plenty of blame to go around, but here are five big reasons why the San Diego Chargers fell short in their quest to make the 2015 NFL Playoffs. Read More