The AFC playoff race is going to be tight until the end. Two AFC West teams, the Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Chargers, are quickly getting squeezed out of the postseason hunt, though. Both teams sit at 5-8 and likely lost out on any chance of making the playoffs after losing last week. Still, AFC West battles are always fun, so we are going to explain how you can watch the game between the two on Thursday Night Football.
When and where is Thursday Night Football
The Chargers will take on the Raiders at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. Kickoff is at 8:15 p.m. for the Thursday game on Dec. 14.
How to watch Chargers vs. Raiders
As has been the case since Week 2, Thursday Night Football will once again be streamed on Prime Video for the Week 15 iteration. Therefore, this game will not be on national television.
Date: Thursday, Dec. 14 | Time: 8:15 p.m. ET
Location: Allegiant Stadium — Las Vegas, Nevada
TV channel: N/A | Live stream: Prime Video
Odds: Raiders -3 | O/U 33.5
Chargers storylines
The Chargers have disappointed in comparison to expectations for years now, and Brandon Staley is firmly on the hot seat. The team is stacked with talent, but they continuously underproduce. The one player who has kept them in a lot of games is Justin Herbert.
Now, their star quarterback won't be able to save them. Herbert fractured a finger on his throwing hand against the Denver Broncos, and he will miss the game against the Raiders.
Herbert is one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, and his backup is a somewhat unknown commodity. However, Easton Stick did look okay in replacement for Herbert against the Broncos. Stick progressed through his reads well and looked comfortable in the pocket. Many fans might not be familiar with Stick, but he has his coaching staff's full confidence. Stick has stuck with the Chargers as a backup since 2019.
Stick also has the ultimate bailout option in Keenan Allen. The receiver's 108 receptions are easily the most in the NFL this season. That is a single-season record for the Chargers, and he actually broke the record with Stick passing him the ball.
Still, the Chargers only scored seven points against the Broncos, and it was the third straight week that they have not scored more than 10 points. The offense has been struggling outside of Allen, and Austin Ekeler looks like a shell of his former self.
Raiders storylines
Like the Chargers, the Raiders will go into this game without the quarterback who was expected to be their guy for the entirety of this season. Aiden O'Connell was named the starting signal-caller going forward back on Nov. 1 despite Jimmy Garoppolo signing a three-year deal to be the starter back in the offseason.
O'Connell will likely remain the team's starter this week despite a poor game last week. The quarterback only had 171 yards and couldn't manage to lead his team to a single score as the Raiders were embarrassed in a 3-0 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. The poor outing does leave the door open for Garoppolo reemerging as the starter, though. The Raiders have not officially made a decision on that front. Since 2008, only one time has a team won an NFL game when scoring three or fewer points. That performance was done by the Vikings over the Raiders last week.
The Raiders offense has been inept for most of the season, and the team is still struggling to get Davante Adams the football. Fortunately for the Raiders, their defense has actually been solid in recent weeks. In the five games since Antonio Pierce took over as interim head coach, the team has only allowed more than 20 points once, and that was against an elite Chiefs offense.
This is largely in thanks to Maxx Crosby, who is one of the best defensive players in the NFL. In a 10-tackle and two-sack effort, the defensive end broke a number of records against the Vikings. He became the quickest Raider to 50 career sacks, he became one of four players in NFL history with 50 plus sacks and 300 plus tackles in their first five seasons, and with 76 tackles on the season, he secured the Raiders' record for most tackles through 13 weeks of a season. Crosby is truly elite as both a pass rusher and a run-stopper.
While Easton Stick did look poised last week, he struggled at times when the Broncos brought the blitz. Crosby is sure to startle the Chargers' young quarterback in a similar fashion.
While the playoffs seem like a long shot for both of these teams, the two AFC West rivals hate each other and always deliver battles; that is sure to be the case again in Week 15.
Follow Us
Subscribe
