Thursday Night Football: Z-Code’s Pick to Start Week 6
The Denver Broncos are playing the San Diego Chargers in San Diego this Thursday night. The Broncos started out the season looking just as dominant as in 2015- if anything, more dominant. Their brick-wall-of-a-defense has seemed every bit the same but the once-concerning addition QB Trevor Siemian seemed to have jump-started Denver’s offense. They scored 21 or more points in all of their first 4 games and have, overall, been exponentially more successful at moving the chains in 2016. However, Siemian went down in week four and rookie, Paxton Lynch took over. Lynch was a powerhouse in that game, throwing for 170 yards and a TD after taking over for Siemian. However, he couldn’t build momentum and led the Broncos to their first loss of the season against the Falcons in week 5. Broncos fans can take some solace in the fact that Siemian is slotted to play on Thursday. However, can Denver’s devastating loss to, what most believe to be, a far weaker team at home really be attributed solely to the new quarterback? Or is this the beginning of the end for the Broncos?
If someone were ever to ask me who I would bet on in a game with the Broncos against a Chargers team with no Keenan Allen and no Danny Woodhead, I’d typically respond “Broncos” instantly. However, I find myself having my doubts this week. The Chargers have only one win this season but the team seems to be playing far beyond it’s expected capability. Rivers threw for 359 yards and four touchdowns last week without any of his favorite targets in the game. The Chargers are an offensive powerhouse with no defense. They’ve scored at least 22 points in every game this season and their averaging close to 30. The Broncos, despite their reputation as a defensive wall, were unable to stop the Falcons, a team similar to San Diego in many respects, in Colorado. I wouldn’t be shocked to see another Denver collapse here.
My doubts are one thing, but the facts are another. The key fact to pay attention to for this game is that 72% of the public money is currently on Denver against the spread and Vegas has done little in the way of line adjustment to compensate for it. The smart play here is San Diego, I feel it in my gut and the numbers seem to validate it.
Z-Code’s Prediction: Chargers 23 Broncos 17
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