The LA Chargers host the Las Vegas Raiders in a highly-anticipated Week 1 matchup. The last time these two teams played they delivered an instant classic for NFL fans in Week 18 that nearly led to the most absurd tie scenario the sport has ever seen.
Eight months later the Chargers are looking to exact revenge with a much better roster that ranks among the best in the league. Las Vegas made additions as well, adding both Davante Adams and Chandler Jones to a playoff team that may have overachieved last season.
The Chargers enter the game as 3.5-point favorites at home and there have been a myriad of different predictions from NFL pundits about what could happen in this game. Perhaps the best prediction of them all has to be Stephen A. Smith's.
On Friday's episode of 'First Take' on ESPN, Smith gave one of the most mind-boggling predictions for a football game possible. Smith confidently predicted that the Chargers would score the most points among the four AFC West teams in Week 1. However, when asked to predict who would win literally seconds after, Smith thought about it and said he was going to have to go with the Raiders.
According to Smith, the Chargers are going to make literal NFL history in Week 1. They will become the first team in NFL history to score more points than the opposition but still lose the game. Not a great way to start the 2022 season.
Stephen A. Smith is right about the Chargers points, though.
While his prediction on who is going to win the game was a bit absurd, Smith is 100% correct about the Chargers being the AFC West team that scores the most points in Week 1. The Bolts had one of the most explosive offenses in the league last season that only got better this season.
Not only did the team get better from a talent standpoint but it got better from a comfort standpoint as well. This is the offense's second season in Joe Lombardi's system, which is only going to lead to good things for Justin Herbert and co.
The Bolts are also squaring off against one of the worst defenses in the league. The Raiders allowed the seventh-most points in the league last season and are not much better defensively. Chandler Jones is not that much better than Yannick Ngakoue and the secondary undoubtedly got worse for Vegas.
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As long as the Chargers do not shoot themselves in the foot they should be able to score well over 30 points in this matchup against the Raiders.