The Los Angeles Chargers are kicking off their stretch against some of the league’s best teams, and it begins with a Sunday night showdown against Joe Burrow and the Bengals. These two teams will face off for the first time since 2021, where the Chargers dominated in a 41-22 victory. However, the Bengals got the last laugh as they went on to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl.
The Chargers are hot and look to extend their three-game winning streak this Sunday. They’ve done this off of the back of superstar QB Justin Herbert, who – despite his unimpressive totals – has played his best football this year. Herbert will be throwing to his usual options, with hopes that veteran wideout DJ Chark will get his first snaps as a Charger after missing the first portion of the season due to injury. His receivers will be going against Cincinnati’s middle-of-the-pack secondary. Cam Taylor-Britt and Mike Hilton are the top corners on this roster, with former Raven Geno Stone trying to fill the hole at FS left by Jessie Bates in the 2023 off-season. That said, Justin Herbert should be able to find an open man more often than not.
The bigger question will be how much time Herbert will have to go through his progressions. The star of this Bengals Defense is EDGE Trey Hendrickson, who leads the NFL in sacks. Hendrickson is questionable but is expected to suit up against the Bolts. He’ll be matched up against either Joe Alt or Rashawn Slater all game, neither of which is an easy task. Slater is a top-three LT in the league, and Alt is already playing like a star in his rookie season. While fans can’t expect the duo to silence Hendrickson, it will surely be one of the toughest nights the star will have all season.
One of the biggest storylines for the Chargers defense this week has been about who will guard Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Late-round rookies Cam Hart and Tarheeb Still are proving themselves to be the future of this secondary, and the chances are one of them sees a lot of snaps against one of the two star WRs. However, the Chargers have Ja’Marr Chase’s former high school and college teammate Kristian Fulton. Fulton has had a bounce-back year in LA and would face his toughest test yet against Chase. Should this LSU-on-LSU matchup happen, it could decide Fulton’s long-term future with the Chargers.
Speaking of LSU, it’s impossible to ignore number nine in the orange and white. Joe Burrow is easily a top-five QB in the NFL, and he’s had an MVP-caliber year despite his team’s 4-6 record. Burrow threw for 428 yards in the Thursday night Thriller against the Ravens. That seemed to be the story of the season as Cincy lost in the last minutes. Burrow will be looking to bounce back from that loss with a healthy Tee Higgins returning to the lineup. Of course, he will have to do this against the top defense in football. The Chargers pass-rush has been eating recently and Burrow will be worrying about who’s coming off the edge all night.
The Chargers also have the advantage when it comes to injuries. Their injury report is as short as can be, with Khalil Mack (Questionable) being the only notable player featured on the list. The Bengals are a different story. Their injury report features players like the previously mentioned Trey Hendrickson, OT Orlando Brown, and OLB Logan Wilson. While all of these players could still very possibly play, it’s not a good start for the Bengals. If none of these players are playing to their top ability, they’re going to be digging themselves out of a hole all game.
This game is far more important for the Bengals than for the Chargers. Even though the Bolts need to win one or two of their next five games to have great chances at the playoffs, a loss on Sunday could practically end Cincinnati’s season. The Bengals’ playoff chances drop below 25% if they lose to the Chargers and fall to 4-7. This isn’t how Joe Burrow goes out, so it will be hard to imagine them not putting up a fight in SoFi Stadium.