Week 2 at Buffalo
All of the makings for a poor performance are there in this one. A cross-country trip to the east coast for an early kickoff rarely ever goes well for the west coast team. Plus, the Buffalo Bills will be eager to erase the memory of the crushing defeat they suffered at the hands of the Chargers last year.
But much like the first game, this one comes down to the quarterback position as well.
Who is going to be playing quarterback for the Bills in Week 2? AJ McCarron? Josh Allen? Nathan Peterman? Chargers fans would like that third option.
But regardless who it is, the Chargers have the better quarterback and a tough defense to go up against whoever the Bills choose to go with. Still, the Chargers won’t have as easy a time in this one as they did last year in Los Angeles.
In fact, if the Bills still had Tyrod Taylor (who they chose to bench prior to the Chargers game last season), I may be inclined to go with the Bills in this one. After all, they were a playoff team last season.
But the miserable day for Peterman last season wasn’t the only reason the Chargers won by 30 points. The Bolts racked up 146 yards on the ground in that game, averaging over four yards per carry. Beyond that, Keenan Allen had one of his best games of the year, catching 12 passes for 159 yards and two touchdowns.
It’s unrealistic to expect that kind of overall performance again, but I still think the Chargers have enough to find a way to win a tough early-season road game.
Prediction: Chargers 20, Bills 16