Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports
The San Diego Chargers hopes of making the 2014 AFC playoffs were diminished slightly when they lost to the New England Patriots 23-14 on Sunday. The good news for the Bolts is that some of the other NFL teams they are competing against to make the playoffs lost as well. With losses by the Kansas City Chiefs and Miami Dolphins this past weekend, the Chargers would theoretically make the playoffs as the No. 6 seed if the season ended today.
Unfortunately for them, however, they most likely have no hope of getting higher than the No. 2 seed now. If they had beaten New England and then gone on to beat the Denver Broncos next week, they would have been in prime position to lock down home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. With New England having a two-game lead on them and a head-to-head advantage, that hope is all but gone. And with Denver winning yesterday, the Bolts are in a must-win situation this weekend if they have any hope of winning the AFC West and getting at least a No. 2 seed.
As it sits now, the Chargers would be facing the Indianapolis Colts on the road, a matchup most fans of the Chargers would not relish. They would much rather be the No. 5 seed and playing the Cincinnati Bengals, a team they beat last year in Cincinnati in the playoffs and have a lot of confidence against. If the Chargers cant get higher than a Wild Card, this is the matchup they need to hope plays out.
A win this weekend against the Broncos and the Chargers shrink the deficit to one game with two to play. San Diego would still need some help to get that No. 2 seed, but at least they would have eliminated the head-to-head advantage Denver has over them. A loss would officially end any hope of winning the division as Denver would have a three-game lead over them with two to play. If the Chargers want to even make the playoffs, however, they need a win in general as the group of teams just behind them and in the hunt are growing. A win by the Houston Texans, Baltimore Ravens, Dolphins or Chiefs combined with a Chargers loss would knock San Diego out of their No. 6 seed position for the week.
There is still three weeks to go, but San Diego needs to focus solely on Denver if they want to bolster their hopes of getting into the NFL playoffs. They have a lot to lose if they dont win this Sunday.
Jonathan George is an NFL writer forRantSports.com. Follow him onTwitter@jonageorge. Like him onFacebookor add him to your network onGoogle.
Source: http://www.rantsports.com/nfl/2014/12/08/nfl-playoff-picture-week-15-san-diego-chargers-scenarios/
