Will the Chargers continue their good run?

In the night from Monday to Tuesday, the Arizona Cardinals and the Los Angeles Chargers will face each other in the National Football League. Despite the home advantage and a similar record, the bookmakers favor the LA team before this encounter. We now want to take a closer look at the reasons for this in our Arizona Cardinals vs. Los Angeles Chargers prediction. You can look forward to seeing what we come up with.

Although the Los Angeles Chargers seem to be tipped to win this clash against the Arizona Cardinals, we should not be confused by the odds distribution. LA had a much easier opening program, so the table is not particularly meaningful. For this reason, we are now going into the detailed analysis and taking a closer look at the two teams.

In the squad analysis of the two teams, one player stands out in particular and that is running back J.K. Dobbins. The Chargers’ superstar is largely responsible for LA’s strong running game and has already scored three times in the end zone in the first five games. Since the Cardinals have looked rather unfortunate against the running game so far, this weakness should also come into play in the upcoming game.

Kickoff of this NFL game is on Tuesday at 3:00 a.m. in the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale. The game can be followed live and in full on DAZN.

Arizona Cardinals – Statistics & current form

Arizona has not had a particularly good start to the new season, winning only two of the first six games. However, the opening program was also quite ungrateful, because with opponents such as Buffalo, Detroit, San Francisco, Washington and Green Bay, the Cardinals already had to play five strong teams. So the question arises as to whether Jonathan Gannon’s team will find its way in the coming weeks or whether participating in the playoffs this year will remain a wish.

Answering this question seems almost impossible at the moment, because the rest of the program could go either way. The next three games against the Los Angeles Chargers, the Miami Dolphins and the Chicago Bears could be crucial. In theory, the Cardinals are capable of winning all three games and thus catapulting themselves up the table. However, theory does not always translate into practice, so the fans of the Cardinal Birds can look forward to an exciting few weeks.

Kyler Murray has problems in the passing game

The Cardinals’ starting quarterback has only gained 1,186 passing yards in the current season and is therefore ranked 19th in the league. It is therefore no wonder that Arizona, with only 187.0 passing yards per game, is one of the weakest teams in the National Football League in this category. On the other hand, Kyler Murray has already thrown eight touchdowns and only two interceptions, so his passing game has been pretty clean so far. The slight problems in the passing game are therefore not only due to the quarterback.

Arizona’s running game is strong

While the passing game has not looked particularly good so far, the running game has been all the better. The Cardinals are averaging 145.2 rushing yards and are among the best NFL teams. James Connor stands out in particular, as the Arizona running back already has 403 rushing yards and is therefore in the top 10. Kyler Murray should also be mentioned here, because apart from Jayden Daniels and Lamar Jackson, there is no quarterback who is stronger on the run than him.

So the offense has its weapons and therefore scores 22.2 points per game. This wouldn’t be a bad value if it weren’t for the problems on defense. Arizona allows an average of 27.2 points, making it one of the weakest defenses in the league. This is primarily due to their run defense, as only two teams allow more rushing yards than the Cardinals (⌀153.0). This could also be a decisive disadvantage in the game against the Los Angeles Chargers.

Key players of the Arizona Cardinals:
QB: Kyler Murray – RB. James Conner – WR: Marvin Harrison Jr. – WR: Michael Wilson – K: Chad Nyland

Los Angeles Chargers – Statistics & current form

Los Angeles can look back positively on the start of the season, because with three wins in the first five games, Jim Harbaugh’s team is still in sixth place in the American Football Conference. The Chargers would currently qualify for the playoffs, even though they have played a game less than most of the other teams. However, the good start should not be overrated, because the opening program with Las Vegas, Carolina, Pittsburgh, Kansas City and Denver was quite easy.

So how likely are they to make the NFL playoffs? We may be getting ahead of ourselves here, but looking at the rest of the schedule, the knockout round should be feasible. Apart from the Kansas City Chiefs, the Baltimore Ravens and the Cincinnati Bengals, there is no opponent that the team from LA couldn’t beat. If you like long-term betting, you can seriously consider taking the odds for the Chargers here. However, the betting odds are dropping sharply and are now only 1.65.

Justin Herbert has room for improvement

With 815 passing yards, the Chargers’ starting quarterback is one of the weakest players at his position. It is therefore no surprise that only two teams, New England and Tennessee, are even weaker in the passing game than Los Angeles. On the other hand, Justin Herbert has only thrown one interception, making him a very safe player. Overall, however, the visiting quarterback still has some work to do, because this cautious style of play will no longer be enough in the playoffs at the latest.

Running machine J.K. Dobbins

We have already mentioned the weak passing game, but what about the running game? With 127.8 rushing yards per game, the Chargers are among the most potent rushing teams in the National Football League. This is primarily due to J.K. Dobbins, who has already accumulated 438 rushing yards in the first five games of the current season. He has also scored three times in the end zone, making him his team’s top scorer.

However, the performance of the D-Line has been much more decisive for the team’s success so far. The Chargers’ defense is allowing only 13.2 points per game, currently even leading the NFL. So far, Los Angeles has not allowed opposing teams to score more than 20 points, not even the Kansas City Chiefs. It has hardly mattered whether the opponent preferred the passing game or the run game.

Key players for the Los Angeles Chargers:
QB: Justin Herbert – RB: J.K. Dobbins – WR: Quentins Johnston – DE: Joey Bosa – K: Cameron Dicker

Arizona Cardinals – Los Angeles Chargers Head-to-head comparison

In the pure team analysis, neither team could really assert itself, but what about in the direct comparison? In fact, the H2H comparison goes surprisingly clearly to the guests. The Chargers won 24 of the 34 meetings and thus almost 71% of the duels. The last encounter on 27/11/2022 also went to Los Angeles 25-24. For this reason, the Arizona Cardinals vs. Los Angeles Chargers betting odds also tend to favor the away team.

Arizona Cardinals – Los Angeles Chargers betting tip

Our betting tip for the Arizona Cardinals v Los Angeles Chargers game is under 48.5 points. This is primarily because the visitors are extremely solid defensively and take few risks offensively. As a result, LA has only scored 31.4 points per game so far. So there is still plenty of room before we reach our line.

Alternatively, we recommend you the Arizona Cardinals vs. Los Angeles Chargers odds for a win by the guests. Overall, the game looks quite even, but the strength of the home offense meets the strength of the opposing defense. As a result, the home side’s offensive play should not work as well as it has in recent weeks. This gives us a decisive advantage for the visiting team.