NFL Week 4 Predictions: Jacksonville Jaguars vs. San Diego Chargers

Jacksonville Jaguars vs. San Diego Chargers
Sunday, 9/28/14, 4:05 PM EST
Opening Point Spread: San Diego -13.5
Current Betting Line: San Diego -13
Opening Total: 44.5
Current Total: 45
Odds Courtesy of Bookmaker

Chargers vs. Broncos NFL Preview — San Diego Chargers QB Philip Rivers has put up great numbers against the Jacksonville Jaguars in his career

Jacksonville has dropped its first three games of the season, including a 44-17 defeat to the Indianapolis Colts as six-point home underdogs last week, while going OVER the betting total in each of those affairs. The Jaguars have been outscored by a league-worst 75 points this season, which can’t be ignored when making your Week 4 NFL predictions, especially since they’ve dropped their last three games in this series by an average of 22.3 points. Jacksonville is 2-8 SU and 6-4 ATS as underdogs of 10 or more points the last two-plus seasons.

The Jaguars are expected to start quarterback Blake Bortles for the first time in this matchup, which is important to consider when looking over the NFL betting lines, as he completed 14 of 24 passes for 223 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions in his first round of action last week. The former UCF Knights star will need to lead the offense to some points, as the defense ranks last in the league in allowing 466 yards per game.

San Diego could easily be 3-0 on the season, but it has managed to cover the number in each of its contests, including a 22-10 victory over the Buffalo Bills as 2.5-point road underdogs last week. The Chargers will be led by quarterback Philip Rivers, who has completed 66 of 83 passes for 913 yards and seven touchdowns in his last three games against the Jaguars. He completed 84.6 percent of his attempts in last year’s 24-6 road win in the series. San Diego is 8-5 SU and 6-7 ATS as favorites since 2012.

The Chargers certainly have some injury concerns, especially at the running back position with Ryan Matthews out for a couple months and Danny Woodhead being lost for the season. San Diego will rely heavily on former Indianapolis Colts running back Donald Brown, who finished with a career-high 31 carries last week. He could be a sneaky play for fantasy football players due to Jacksonville surrendering an NFL-worst 160.0 yards per game on the ground.