Bengals (5-7) at Chargers (9-3)
Sunday 4:05 p.m. ET, StubHub Center, Los Angeles
TV: CBS
Danny Sheridan's line: by 14 ⁄2
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Bengals key to victory: The Bengals are reeling, losing four in a row. QB Andy Dalton is out for the season. WR A.J. Green is expected to have season-ending toe surgery, ESPN reports. The defense ranks in the bottom two in points, total yards, passing yards and rushing yards allowed per game. The Bengals will need a game in which DT Geno Atkins is unblockable. They could also use rookie FS Jessie Bates taking an interception in for a touchdown as he did in Week 8, Cincinnati's last victory. The Bengals' lack of firepower will cause the offense to struggle, so the defense will have to prevail.
Chargers keys to victory: The Chargers have a solid matchup. The Bengals defensive line is one of the worst run units in the NFL. They are average at best at getting after the passer. Those are the two things needed to slow down QB Philip Rivers and his offense. Big plays should be the key for the Chargers, who cut RT Joe Barksdale and brought back WR Dylan Cantrell. On defense, they need to make life hard on Jeff Driskel. If the Chargers can rattle the young quarterback, they shouldn't have any issues stopping the Bengals.
Matchup to watch: Bengals DT Atkins vs. Chargers OG Dan Feeney. If the Bengals are to pull off the upset, it'll be because Atkins had a field day. He leads the Bengals with 16 quarterback hits and is tied for the team lead with seven sacks.
Who wins: The Chargers blitz Driskel into multiple costly mistakes and the Bengals fail to stop the Los Angeles offense.
Chargers, 34-10 Chargers BENGALS SCHEDULE
W..atIndianapolis ..34-23 W ....... Baltimore ....... 34-23 L ....... at Carolina ....... 31-21 W ...... atAtlanta ...... 36-37 W .......... Miami .......... 27-17 L ...... Pittsburgh ...... 28-21 L ...atKansasCity ...45-10 W ..... TampaBay ..... 37-34 Nov. 4 .............. Bye .............. L ..... New Orleans ..... 51-14 L ..... at Baltimore ..... 24-21 L ....... Cleveland ....... 35-20 L .......... Denver .......... 24-10 Dec.9..atChargers..4:05 Dec. 16 ....... Oakland ....... 1 Dec.23 ...atCleveland ...1 Dec.30 ..atPittsburgh ..1
L ........ Kansas City ........ 38-28 W ......... at Buffalo ......... 31-20 L ....... at L.A. Rams ....... 35-23 W ..... San Francisco ..... 29-27 W .......... Oakland .......... 26-10 W ...... at Cleveland ...... 38-14 W ..... Tenn. (Lon.) ..... 20-19 Oct. 28 ............... Bye ............... W ......... at Seattle ......... 25-17 W ......... at Oakland ......... 20-6 L ............ Denver ............ 23-22 W ............ Arizona ............ 4:05 W ..... at Pittsburgh ..... 33-30 Dec. 9 ...... Cincinnati ...... 4:05 Dec. 13 at Kansas City 8:20 Dec. 22 or 23BaltimoreTBD Dec. 30 ..... at Denver ..... 4:25