CHARGERS (0-5) vs. CHIEFS (4-0)
When: Sunday, 1:25 p.m. (PDT)
Where: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Mo.
TV/Radio: Ch. 2; 640 AM/103.9/98.3 FM (Spanish)
Line: Chiefs by 7 1/2
Notable injury designations
Chargers: OUT: RT Joe Alt (neck), LG Kayode Awosika (fibula), WR Tre’ Harris (hamstring), CB Donte Jackson (hamstring), S Derwin James Jr. (hamstring). DOUBTFUL: CB Rodney Shelley (hamstring). QUESTIONABLE: DL Jamree Caldwell (knee), OLB Bud Dupree (neck), WR KeAndre Lambert-Smith (hamstring), WR Brenen Thompson (quadricep), DL Dalvin Tomlinson (hamstring).
Chiefs: OUT: WR Rashee Rice (hamstring/knee), T Josh Simmons (back). QUESTIONABLE: CB L’Jarius Sneed (knee).
What’s at stake: The Chargers haven’t been 0-6 since the Mike Riley-coached team started the 2000 season with 11 consecutive losses en route to a 1-15 record. Are the Chargers headed in that direction again? A loss to the AFC West rival Chiefs certainly would put them on that sort of a path, raising additional questions about the futures of Coach Jim Harbaugh, offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel and any number of players who might be unloaded in a sell-off before the NFL’s trade deadline Nov. 10. Outside linebacker Khalil Mack’s name has been mentioned as a trade possibility more than once by NFL pundits. So has quarterback Justin Herbert.
Who’s better: Quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs have rebounded from a clunker of a 2025 season, when their decade-long run collapsed and they were knocked from their lofty perch atop the AFC West by the Denver Broncos. Adding ex-Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker in the offseason has given the Chiefs a standout running game to go with Mahomes’ passing.
Matchup to watch: It sounds like a broken record, but the Chargers’ rookie-dominated offensive line faces the daunting prospect of another onslaught by another standout defense. Last week, the Broncos swarmed and harassed Herbert into a nightmarish fourth quarter in which he and the Chargers were shut out, forcing him into an interception and a fumble. He also was sacked four times in the final quarter, and five times overall in a 23-17 loss.
Chargers win if: The Chiefs are coming off their bye, after defeating the Las Vegas Raiders, 20-17, behind Walker’s 177 rushing yards. There is the remote possibility the Chiefs come out flat, but that seems unlikely given that the Chargers were the team that officially eliminated them from the playoffs last December. A payback of sorts could be in order. The Chargers must play nearly flawless football to win, something that hasn’t happened this season.
Fantasy sleeper: Omarion Hampton continues to be the Chargers’ lead running back despite a diminished role that’s included fewer and fewer snaps as the season has progressed. Overall, he has rushed for a team-leading 271 yards and three touchdowns on 73 carries. McDaniel likes to spread the workload among Hampton, Kimani Vidal and Keaton Mitchell, but Herbert is the Chargers’ second-leading rusher with 142 yards on 24 scrambles.
Prediction: It’s easy to say the Chargers have zero chance to win and will drop to 0-6. The oddsmakers favor the Chiefs by more than a touchdown, which should tell you how much faith they have in the Chiefs and how little they have in the Chargers. Chiefs 30, Chargers 20.