The Los Angeles Chargers made the playoffs last season for the first time under quarterback Justin Herbert. Can the Bolts take the next step in 2023 and contend for a Super Bowl? Maybe. Let’s break down Herbert and the Chargers.
Check out an in-depth look at Chargers’s defense this season may affect NFL betting odds.
2023 Los Angeles Chargers Defense In-Depth Betting Analysis | MyBookie NFL Preview
Los Angeles Chargers: 53rd season in the NFL
Owner: Dean Spanos
Head Coach: Brandon Staley
Home Field: SoFi Stadium | Inglewood, California
Super Bowl Odds: +2500
Odds to win AFC: +1300
Odds to win AFC West: +340
Regular-season wins: 9.5
To make playoffs: No -120, yes +100
For the first time in the Justin Herbert era, the Chargers were a playoff team last season as they finished 10-7 and earned a wild card spot. However, for some reason Chargers coach Brandon Staley played starting wideout Mike Williams in the meaningless regular-season finale. Williams got hurt and missed the wild card game, a crushing 31-30 loss in Jacksonville.
The Chargers led 27-0 late in the first half. Herbert threw for 273 yards and a touchdown without an interception, but the Chargers’ offense was largely ineffective after a 62-yard TD drive that made it 24-0 midway through the second quarter. Los Angeles finished with 320 yards of offense and 18 first downs, and it produced only three points on four second-half possessions. The Jaguars became the first team to win a playoff game with a turnover differential of minus-five or worse. Teams with that turnover deficit had been 0-19 in the Super Bowl era.
The team was rather quiet in free agency. There was talk that Pro Bowl wideout Keenan Allen might be released in a salary cap move but he’s still with the team. Allen, who turned 31 in April and missed seven games with a hamstring injury in 2022, can still be a highly productive player when healthy. He showed that down the stretch last season, catching 60 balls for 675 yards in his final eight games. He remains one of the league’s best route-runners and most effective third-down weapons.
LA did get Herbert some help in the draft with TCU receiver Quentin Johnston at No. 21 overall. The Chargers have lacked a playmaker who can consistently stretch a defense and provide a deep target for Herbert. That no longer is the case with the addition of Johnston, known for his ability to get quickly downfield and make over-the-shoulder catches. Herbert averaged only 6.8 yards per attempt last year, which ranked No. 26 in the NFL. Meanwhile, Johnston averaged 3.04 yards per route run, which was the best in the Big 12 and ranked eighth in the FBS.
On defense, the free-agent addition of linebacker Eric Kendricks is a shrewd move that upgrades the team immediately and, perhaps, has a knock-on effect if he can help the team’s young linebackers, Kenneth Murray and rookie draft pick Daiyan Henley, along as well. The former All-Pro Hendricks led Minnesota in tackles in each of the past two seasons, including 137 in 2022.
Star defensive end Joey Bosa was limited to two full games during an injury-plagued 2022 season, but he was a superstar during his first six seasons (58 sacks) and is at the prime age of 27. Opposite him will be one of the league’s best edge rushers of the last decade, Khalil Mack.
Mack is now 32 years old but remained effective last season (82% of snaps, eight sacks). Versatile second-round rookie Tuli Tuipulotu brings some much-needed depth. Tuipulotu was the 2022 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year and led the nation with 13.5 sacks in 2022.
Pro Bowl cornerback JC Jackson suffered a torn patellar tendon in his right knee in Week 7 of the 2022 season and has been rehabbing ever since in an effort to get back on the field. Jackson was a massive disappointment before getting hurt.
The Chargers are 2.5-point underdogs for Week 1 vs. Miami. The teams played in LA in Week 14 last year and the Bolts won 23-17. Herbert threw for 367 yards and a touchdown. Tua Tagovailoa struggled for Miami, completing 10 of 28 passes for 145 yards and a touchdown. Tua was the No. 5 overall pick in the 2020 draft, one spot ahead of Herbert.
This will only be the second time the Bolts and Dolphins have met in Week 1 in their histories. The Chargers earned a 50-28 win in the only other meeting, which came back in 1986.
Weeks 2 and 3 at Tennessee and Minnesota, respectively, will be crucial to the Chargers as they look to get off to a strong start to the season, especially considering the six primetime games and daunting opponents that loom down the stretch.
Super Bowl Pick: Over 9.5 wins, yes playoffs Bet Los Angeles Chargers to Win
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Los Angeles Chargers Defense Positions
| POS | Starter | Second |
|---|---|---|
| Left Defensive End | M. FoxMorgan Fox | Scott Matlock |
| Nose Tackle | Austin Johnson | Nick Williams |
| Right Defensive End | ySebastian Joseph-Day | Otito Ogbonnia |
| Left Inside Linebacker | Eric Kendricks | Nick Niemann |
| Right Inside Linebacker | Kenneth Murray | Daiyan Henley |
| Strongside Linebacker | Khalil Mack | Chris Rumph II |
| Weakside Linebacker | Joey Bosa | Tuli Tuipulotu |
| Right Cornerback | Asante Samuel Jr. | Ja’Sir Taylor |
| Left Cornerback | J.C. Jackson | Michael Davis |
| Strong Safety | Derwin James | J. WoodsJT Woods |
| Free Safety | Alohi Gilman | M. WebbMark Webb |
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