The Denver Broncos are no longer unbeaten. The Atlanta Falcons handed the reigning Super Bowl champions their first loss of the season, 23-16, in a thrilling showdown at Sports Authority Field. The Broncos simply had no answer for Atlanta wide receiver Tevin Coleman who caught four passes for 132 yards and a touchdown. With the loss, the Broncos dropped down to 4-1 and are now locked in a two-way tie with the Oakland Raiders for the top spot in the AFC West standings.
They will look to get their season back on track when they take on the San Diego Chargers this coming Thursday. For the Broncos to record the bounce-back win, they will need to execute much better on the offensive end. Paxton Lynch struggled in his first start for Denver, completing just 23 of 35 passes for 223 yards and a late touchdown to Demaryius Thomas with an interception. It didn’t help matters that the Broncos’ O-line didn’t offer Lynch enough protection on Sunday. He was sacked a half-dozen times in the loss to Atlanta. That’s quite a surprise considering the Falcons entered the game ranked 30th in the league in total defense.
Given Lynch’s struggles, the Broncos hope that Trevor Siemian will be fit to play this coming Thursday. He sprained the AC joint in his non-throwing shoulder in Denver’s Week 4 win against Tampa Bay. Siemian was playing some excellent football prior to his injury, putting up a sizzling 110.2 QB rating over his last three games. That’s third-best in the NFL among the 32 quarterbacks with at least 40 attempts during that span.
The Broncos are 5-0 in their last five road games against the Chargers.
Things are going from bad to worse for the San Diego Chargers who crashed to their third consecutive loss with a heart-breaking 34-31 defeat to the Oakland Raiders on Sunday. Turnovers once again played a huge part in the Chargers’ demise as they committed four miscues in this contest, none bigger than Drew Kaser’s late botched hold on a potential game-tying field goal attempt. The Chargers have now recorded 10 turnovers in their last three games.
It won’t get any easier for them this coming weekend as standing in their way are the AFC West-leading Denver Broncos. Denver is sixth in the league in total defense, allowing just 301.0 yards per game this season. The onus then is on quarterback Philip Rivers to deliver a solid performance for the Chargers this coming Thursday. He completed 21 of 30 passes for 359 yards and four touchdowns with two interceptions in the loss to Oakland. Rivers is seventh in the NFL in passing offense, averaging 293.8 yards per game through the air this season. He has already thrown 11 touchdown passes this campaign.
Rivers can’t do it all alone, though, and he will need his teammates to step up their play this coming Thursday. The Chargers, in particular, will need to sort out their sloppy offense. The Raiders converted the Chargers’ four turnovers on Sunday into 14 points. That’s the only thing that’s holding back this San Diego side that’s winless in the AFC West for nearly two years.
The Chargers are 4-6 SU and 3-7 ATS in their last 10 home games.
Writer’s Prediction
San Diego (+3.5) finally snaps its 10-game losing streak in the AFC West with a stunning 31-27 win over Denver.
