How Chargers, Raiders Feel About Tying Week 18 Game On Purpose

A fun, but far-fetched idea seems unlikely to play out in the NFL on Sunday.

The Los Angeles Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders both are knocking on the door to an AFC playoff spot, and are set to play one another in Week 18. By the time they play, they’ll know how the Indianapolis Colts had fared in their game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Should the Colts lose, the Chargers and Raiders would technically only need to tie their game to both get into the playoff.

Thus, the concept of a purposeful tie was born.

Quarterbacks Derek Carr and Justin Herbert could just take knees the entire game, including overtime, burn out the clock and cruise into the playoffs.

With the Jaguars up 16-3 in the third quarter of their game against the Colts, ESPN’s Dianna Russini tweeted out what she heard about the potential tie agreement.

“In case anyone was wondering, based on the conversations I had with the Chargers and Raiders, (if the Jags win), LA and Vegas will not purposely tie to both get into the playoffs. Let’s see how this plays out…”

Too bad.

Again, the idea was a longshot to ever happen. But by playing things out, both teams are giving the winner of the Pittsburgh Steelers-Baltimore Ravens game a shot at getting into the playoffs.