The Denver Broncos host the San Diego Chargers on “Thursday Night Football,” kicking off a huge divisional matchup at 8:25 p.m. ET. The Broncos opened as a 6.5-point favorite, but the line has climbed to 8.5 points at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com. The total is set at 51.5 points.
San Diego has been strong against the spread versus Denver in recent years. The Chargers are 5-1 against the spread in their last six games at Denver and 6-1 ATS in their last seven overall road games. The OddsShark Computer picks a Chargers upset, by a slim 31-30 San Diego margin. The UNDER has hit in four of the last six games between these teams.
The Chargers head into this game with some serious injury concerns. They will be without cornerback Brandon Flowers, who was declared out with a concussion. Cornerback Jason Verrett is questionable with a shoulder injury and is expected to sit out. San Diego also will be without running backs Ryan Mathews and Donald Brown once again, but the secondary injuries are the biggest concern in facing Peyton Manning.
Denver?s most notable new injury is reserve cornerback Omar Bolden, who suffered a concussion. Other than that, running back Montee Ball once again will sit out. Reserve linebacker Steven Johnson is questionable with an ankle injury, but is expected to play.
— The New England Patriots host the Chicago Bears on Sunday afternoon. The Patriots are touchdown favorites, although some sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com have lowered the line to 5.5 points or 6 points. The Patriots are 5-2 overall this season but just 3-4 ATS. The Patriots also are 8-3 ATS in their last 11 home games. The Bears are 4-2 ATS in their last six road games.
The total is set at 50.5 points. The total has gone OVER in four of the Patriots’ last five games and in seven of their last eight home games. It also has gone OVER in eight of the Bears’ last 11 games and in five of their last six road games.
The Patriots had some significant injury news earlier this week: Defensive end Chandler Jones suffered a hip injury and is expected to miss a month. The Patriots also added a player this week, acquiring outside linebacker Akeem Ayers for a draft pick. He will provide the team with some depth at linebacker.
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