LA Chargers: Four potential trap games on the 2020 schedule
![MIAMI, FLORIDA - SEPTEMBER 29: Austin Ekeler #30 of the Los Angeles Chargers runs with the ball in the first quarter against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium on September 29, 2019 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) MIAMI, FLORIDA - SEPTEMBER 29: Austin Ekeler #30 of the Los Angeles Chargers runs with the ball in the first quarter against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium on September 29, 2019 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/https-3A-2F-2Fboltbeat-com-2Fwp-content-2Fuploads-2Fgetty-images-2F2018-2F08-2F1177903767-1-850x560-7aafb0135858e225e6a77d02c82fe869.jpg)
Week 7: @ Miami Dolphins
This has a lot of the makings of a classic upset. The LA Chargers have to travel to Miami for an early game on the east coast to face Tua Tagovailoa and a revamped Dolphins’ offense. Considering that the Chargers struggled with the 2019 version of Dolphins’ for a while until they got it together in the second half, it’s not too hard to see a better Miami team pulling out the win.
There’s also some potential for Justin Herbert to face off against Tagovailoa in this game. Obviously, that’s very dependent on how the first six games go for the Chargers, but there’s definitely a timeline where the season goes sideways and they throw Herbert in. Herbert isn’t ready for the NFL level quite yet, so the possibility does concern me if things go awry with Taylor.
Even with the assumption that the Chargers are doing relatively well by this point, including Taylor, the talent influx that the Dolphins have gotten from the offseason still scares me. Byron Jones and Kyle Van Noy were two huge defensive signings that could pay off in spades. Shaq Lawson was an incredibly underrated defensive signing. The Dolphins addressed the defense as much as they possibly could have with the draft and free agency.
Miami isn’t close to being a playoff contender yet, but I’ll definitely take the over on the five wins they got last year for 2020. They’ll knock off some teams in the regular season that people aren’t expecting. Hopefully, Los Angeles isn’t one of them.