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Seth Wickersham of ESPN.com argues that The San Diego Chargers could shock the Pittsburgh Steelers on the road this weekend despite wind chills that will make temperatures feel like they are in the teens throughout game time. NFL betting odds on this game had the Pittsburgh Steelers as -6 favorites against the Chargers at SBG Global.
Wickersham looked at 5 factors favoring San Diego however.
"After gaining 328 total yards against the Colts, the 5-foot-6, 181-pound flash is the league's newest, hottest weapon. Everyone knew he was a good return guy, but his skills out of the backfield sneaked up on everyone. He didn't reach double digits in carries until the season finale. Against Pittsburgh on Nov. 16, he had one carry.
"The Steelers are probably salivating, eager to put a lick on Sproles to see how he responds. But they've got to find him first. Sproles was almost invisible against the Colts, ducking and dodging behind the line, squirting through holes, making it hard for the defense to get a square shot on him. Granted, Pittsburgh's defense is better than Indy's. But the Chargers don't need Sproles to put up huge numbers. They just need Pittsburgh to respect the threat of him."
Wickersham also suggests that, unlike Philip Rivers, who has been on fire recently, Big Ben has played just well enough to win.
"Among quarterbacks still playing, Roethlisberger is tied with rookie Joe Flacco for worst touchdown-to-interception differential (plus-2). Sneaky guy that Turner, disguising indifference that way."
The second meeting between a defense and a quarterback favors the quarterback.
"True, Pittsburgh has played great defense this season. True, one of its better games was against Rivers on Nov. 16, holding him to 164 yards and intercepting two passes. But there's a reason Rivers has lost consecutive games to the same opponent only once in his career. He adjusts.
"Pittsburgh's speed or home crowd won't surprise him. He'll know which matchups work and which won't. "You can't make a snap judgment of what [Rivers] is capable of based upon what happened in that game," Tomin told reporters this week. Agreed."
Wickersham also suggests that LaDainian Tomlinson not playing due to an injury is a good thing.
"San Diego has wasted precious plays during the past two playoff games -- against the Pats in the 2008 AFC Championship and the Colts last week -- giving the injured superstar a chance."
And finally, perhaps the Chargers are snake-bitten no more after beating Indianapolis last week.
Let's face it, this is a Chargers team that could easily have been 12-4 heading into the Playoffs if not for some last minute gaffes and a bad call that was later deemed as such.
Dan Shapiro, Gambling911.com
