Hello Bolt Nation! Welcome to this week’s Talking Touchdowns! The Chargers are headed back home to Los Angeles where they will host the 5-4 Buffalo Bills. The Chargers are coming off a pretty tough loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars but are surely looking for revenge in their return to their home turf.

LA Chargers vs. Buffalo Bills

Offense

• Philip Rivers had his 185th consecutive start last week against the Jacksonville Jaguars, which is the 4th most in all of NFL history. Rivers self-reported concussion symptoms earlier this week. Last week he threw for 235 yards and two touchdowns and was not sacked. Although there it is unknown as to when the potential head injury might have taken place in last week’s game, he will still need to pass the concussion protocol to play this Sunday.

• To longtime Charger fans, Rivers may have looked off in the game against the Jags – he threw a costly interception and two very well could have been picked off throws as a result of trying to force the ball into coverage. If he is unable to play, it is expected that Kellen Clemens will step up in his place.

• On the other hand, Buffalo’s Tyrod Taylor had a rough week against the New Orleans Saints where he threw for just 56 yards and an interception.

• Although rookie Austin Ekeler had a costly fumble towards the end of the game, he was the only opportunity for Chargers scoring in the game against the Jaguars. Last week he scored both of the two Charger touchdowns and was able to jump start the Chargers offense. He showed off some great balance running in a 28-yard touchdown on his tippy toes and the other touchdown he ran for 22 yards. Ekeler is the first running back since 2013 to have two receiving touchdowns over 20 yards.

• Bills’ tight end, Charles Clay, has been out with a knee injury but made his return to the field last week against the Saints; However, his return did not make a splash and he only ran for 13 yards. Prior to his injury, he was ranked seventh but he and Taylor will be up against a strong Chargers pass rush this week.

Defense

• Chargers’ linebacker Denzel Perryman made his first 2017 start after suffering from an ankle injury in the first preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks. In his debut against the Jaguars, Perryman made a huge impact and throughout three quarters he had eight solo tackles.

• There is no denying the Buffalo Bills defense struggled to stop the run in their 47-10 loss to the New Orleans Saints last week. The week before that, the Bills defense allowed the Jets to rush for 194 yards. After two tough games in a row, the Bills defense is sure to be taking a hard look at what is going wrong.

Game Prediction

Both teams are coming off heartbreaking losses. The Chargers, coming off a three point loss, have shown they can put up a fight with just about anyone in the league but they are struggling to finish the game on top. The Bills, however, are on the other side of the drawing board coming their biggest home loss since 2007. I think the Chargers are going to learn from last week’s mistakes and come out with the W this week. Go Bolts!

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Photo Credits:

• Los Angeles Chargers on Wikimedia Commons by San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers
• Buffalo Bills blue on Wikimedia Commons by Moe Epsilon
• Jackson Jaguars on Wikimedia by SportsLogos.net
• Philip Rivers on flickr by Jeffrey Beall
• Tyrod Taylor on flickr by Keith Allison
• Charles Clay on Wikimedia Commons by Erik Drost
• Denzel Perryman on Wikimedia Commons  by Jeffrey Beall