The Atlanta Falcons and Los Angeles Chargers clash Sunday in week 9 NFL action from Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Los Angeles is coming off a bye week. The Chargers last appeared in a loss to the Seahawks. As for Atlanta, they improved to 4-4 after an overtime victory versus the Panthers in their last outing. Check back all season long for free NFL picks at Sports Chat Place.
Los Angeles started off their year with a win over the Raiders and two losses to the Chiefs and Jaguars. The Chargers would then hit a winning streak versus the Texans, Browns and Broncos. LA took another loss to the Seahawks in their last game.
In the Seattle game back on October 23, the Chargers were down 24-14 by halftime. Los Angeles was outscored 13-9 from there in a 37-23 defeat. QB Justin Herbert finished with 293 yards, two scores and a pick. Austin Ekeler led the rush (31 yards; TD) and the receivers (12 catches; 96 yards; TD).
Over on the Atlanta side, they started out the year at 2-2 with losses to the Saints and Rams before wins over the Seahawks and Browns. The Falcons would then lose to the Buccaneers, beat the 49ers and lose to the Bengals.
In last weekend’s matchup versus the Panthers, Atlanta had a 21-13 lead going into the fourth quarter. The Falcons couldn’t hold on and needed overtime to pull out the 37-34 win. QB Marcus Mariota managed 253 yards with three scores and two picks in the victory.
The Chargers are 4-1 ATS in the last five in Week 9 and 7-2 ATS in their last nine on grass. LA is 9-4 ATS in their last 13 road games.
Meanwhile, Atlanta is 4-1 ATS in their last five in Week 9 and 4-1 ATS in the last five on grass. The Falcons are 6-2 ATS in their last eight overall.
PICK: I’m going with the Chargers, but probably staying away. This one could go either way. LA gave up a truckload of production to Seattle in their last game: 404 total yards, 6.4 yards per play, 24 first downs and 33:57 in time of possession. The Chargers managed 329 yards (276 passing) on the other side with 21 first downs, but also committed a couple of turnovers and seven penalties.
As for Atlanta, they get credit for powering out the overtime win versus Carolina, but it wasn’t pretty. The Falcons gave up 478 yards of offense in that one and had real trouble in the fourth quarter. I suspect this one will be pretty close for most of the game as well.