Outside of earning a first-round bye, the New England Patriots may have gotten the next best thing to start the playoffs, a wild-card round matchup vs. the injury-ravaged Los Angeles Chargers.
New England will play in its first postseason contest in four years on Sunday and bring playoff football back to Gillette Stadium after a six-year hiatus when it hosts Los Angeles.
Of course, anything is possible, but Patriots fans should feel good about their team’s chances.
Coaching legend Bill Belichick discussed New England’s upcoming battle with the Chargers on Tuesday and explained how Justin Herbert and company could be “in trouble.” Belichick did, however, also offer a scenario where Los Angeles could make things interesting in the wild-card contest.
“Bill Belichick, on @SiriusXMNFL and ‘Let’s Go’ with @JimGrayOfficial, on what he’s watching for in Chargers-Patriots playoff game: ‘What’s the quarterback situation with Herbert? Broken hand and all, that’s definitely been a factor. They’ve had some injuries on the offensive line,’” ESPN’s Mike Reiss posted on X. ‘If the Chargers have to play from behind, and pass block and try to protect and throw the ball 35, 40 times, I think they’re going to be in a lot of trouble. ‘If they can play from ahead, get control of the game, make it a tight game; they certainly have the defense — and if they have enough of a running game… I think they would certainly have a chance.’”
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With the AFC West out of reach entering Week 18, the Chargers played things safe in the regular season finale and rested their Pro Bowl signal-caller.
Los Angeles’ offense struggled mightily vs. the Denver Broncos on Sunday, scoring just three points in a 19-3 defeat, giving their AFC West foes the top seed.
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The Patriots and Chargers are scheduled to kick off at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday.
