There’s been any number of disappointing teams in the NFL this season but none more so than the Los Angeles Chargers. The Chargers went 12-4 last season and came into the 2019 campaign with high expectations. They’ve fallen profoundly short of them. The Chargers enter this Sunday afternoon contest against the Jacksonville Jaguars at 4-8 SU/4-7-1 ATS and having lost three straight games.
The Jacksonville Jaguars might not have had as high of expectations as the Chargers but they’ve also been extremely disappointing. Some of their problems are beyond their control, like losing their starting quarterback before halftime of the opening game of the year. Much of it, however, is a combination of inept coaching from Doug Marrone and under-performance from a talented but unfocused defense. Marrone will be hard pressed to keep his job after the season ends. Further questions concern the future of Nick Foles in Jacksonville when he’s been injured most of the season but badly outplayed by Gardner Minshew II when he has been healthy.
Jacksonville has now lost four straight games by 17+ points. It’s one thing to lose to a playoff contender like Houston or even decent teams like Tennessee or Indianapolis on the road. It’s another thing entirely to be blown out by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at home and making Jameis Winston look like a capable NFL quarterback in the process. What is most maddening about the Jaguars is how much talent they have on defense and how poorly the defense has played this season.
The Chargers have been more unlucky than good. Consider that these two teams have identical records at 4-8 but the Jaguars have a -72 differential while the Chargers have a +4 differential. To score more points than you give up and be four games under .500 is almost technically impossible. The Chargers are the only team in the league with a positive differential and a record under .500. That suggests that the team has plenty of talent but hasn’t been able to execute at the right time. Anthony Lynn is starting to feel the heat from Chargers fans and he might not survive the offseason either.
LA has been a decent road investment under Lynn going 14-8-2 ATS. They’ve dominated the AFC South for years and are on a longterm run of 28-10 SU/30-6 ATS. They’ve also gone 7-3 SU/8-2 ATS against Jacksonville. The Jaguars may have quit on Marrone but there’s some reason to think that the Chargers will have a better competitive pedigree and will use this opportunity to ‘get healthy’ before a tough stretch run.
