Kansas City at L.A. Chargers 2018 NFL Week 1 Odds & Pick

An AFC West rivalry renews itself in Week 1 as the Kansas City Chiefs head to the temporary home of the Los Angeles Chargers. The Chiefs will have second-year quarterback Patrick Mahomes at the helm of their offense, looking to use his quick feet and his cannon arm to unsettle opposing defenses. His counterpart will be the ageless Philip Rivers, who has a reputation for making incredible plays — but also for throwing game-ending interceptions. The Chargers are an early favorite in the AFC West but have a significant reputation for inconsistency to overcome. This should be an exciting matchup from the West Coast, so check out our NFL odds preview before you commit to your wagers.

Kansas City at L.A. Chargers 2018 NFL Week 1 Odds & Pick

☝️ #ChiefsKingdom pic.twitter.com/W3aN78eUFz

— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) August 26, 2018

When: Sunday, September 9, 2018, 4:05pm ET Where: StubHub Center, Carson, CA TV: CBS Radio: KCFX 101.1 FM Kansas City / KFI 640 AM Los Angeles Live Stream: NFL Live NFL Odds: Kansas City +3, O/U 48

Why should you bet on the Chiefs?

It looks like Kansas City fans could be in store for some barnburners this year. In the opening moments of the Chiefs’ preseason tilt against the Atlanta Falcons, Mahomes found Tyreek Hill for a bomb that went for a touchdown, but then the defense simply lay down fro Matt Ryan and the Atlanta offense. This is a Chiefs team that can win high-scoring games, as Kareem Hunt is in the backfield, and Sammy Watkins is another wideout option. What about the Chiefs’ defense? Well, they have Eric Berry and Justin Houston as their playmakers, but they have spent a lot of time on the injury shelf as of late. They lost Marcus Peters, and they weren’t a great defensive team with him on the field. The Chiefs last played a real contest against Tennessee in the wild card round of the playoffs last year, seeing a 21-3 halftime lead turn into a 22-21 loss. If the defense cannot play any better, it could be a long day for the Chiefs, as the Chargers have the pass rush to force Mahomes into mistakes. If you like the Chiefs, you see that high-scoring offense outscoring Rivers & Company.

Why should you put your money on the Chargers?

The Chargers’ offense looked solid in its first game action this preseason, as Rivers and tailback Melvin Gordon were able to glide down the field with minimal resistance. This was the fourth-ranked offense in the NFL a year ago, and they showed why with their performance last week. Rivers does have a tendency to throw bad picks, but he also can lead late-game drives as well as any of the other top quarterbacks in the league, and now that he has a defense that can keep opposing offenses off the field, he doesn’t have to outscore the other team by himself every week. The Chargers’ defense has Joey Bosa leading a ferocious pass rush, and their secondary has the length and speed to cover all over the field. They do struggle stopping the run, but if they can shore their gaps up, they should force other teams into lots of short possessions, which gives Rivers lots of time to move the ball down the field and get points. If you like the Chargers, you see that pass rush harassing the second-year, and you see the secondary closing off his key options, while the Chargers take advantage of a porous defense and put up a lot of points.

Expert Pick and Final Score Prediction

I was very impressed with the Chargers down the stretch last year and was disappointed when they missed out on the postseason. It looks likes them leveraging a lot of that energy from a year ago and pushing to the top of the division, with the other three teams all in some sort of rebuilding mode. I predict a final score of Chargers 31, Chiefs 20.