By admin 
Four of the last five meetings between the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Chargers were one-possession games, so the gap between a 2-2 team and a 0-4 team may not mean much once the ball is kicked. Denver won the most recent one 19-3 in January. The Broncos will wear Summit White jerseys and pants at SoFi Stadium on Sunday, with Sean Payton back calling the plays.
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Payton did not dress up where his team stands. “Certainly this isn’t championship football,” the coach said Wednesday. Here is the case for Denver and the case against.
Reasons the Broncos will beat the Chargers in Week 5
The Chargers keep giving the ball away.
Los Angeles has 10 giveaways in four games, tied for the most in the NFL and already one more than it had in all of 2024. Four of them came last week at Seattle. Justin Herbert has six interceptions and running back Omarion Hampton has lost two fumbles. The Chargers even lost a game at Buffalo in which they forced five turnovers. Denver has only four takeaways of its own, so this reason leans on the Chargers’ habits more than the Broncos’ defense.
Denver’s offensive line is keeping Bo Nix upright.
Nix has been sacked five times in four games, and Denver has allowed 10 quarterback hits, fourth fewest in the league. Tackle Garett Bolles has an 83.6 pass-block grade through Week 4, according to PFF, and guard Quinn Meinerz has drawn early Protector of the Year talk. That matters against Khalil Mack, who has a sack in three straight games.
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Herbert is working behind a patched-together line.
The Chargers ruled out seven players, including right tackle Joe Alt, and left tackle Rashawn Slater is on injured reserve. The group that finished last week’s game at Seattle included four rookies. Herbert has been sacked 12 times, and Denver’s defense has generated 77 pressures in four games, according to PFF. Edge rusher Nik Bonitto owns an 86.5 pass-rush grade on 94 pass-rush snaps in the same PFF data.
Reasons the Chargers will beat the Broncos
Denver is missing both starting cornerbacks.
Pat Surtain II (ankle) and Riley Moss (ribs) are out, and Surtain’s non-contact ankle injury came in a game the 49ers went on to win with 21 points after halftime. The cornerback depth in Denver is now Jahdae Barron, Kris Abrams-Draine and Ja’Quan McMillian. Barron has played 70 defensive snaps all season and Abrams-Draine 34, according to PFF. “Those guys both kind of got thrown in the fire and I thought handled it well,” Payton said of Barron and Abrams-Draine. They now get a full game against Tre’ Harris, who has 209 yards on 13 catches with a long of 53.
The Broncos have not stopped the run.
Denver allows 142.8 rushing yards per game, 29th in the league, and gave up 220 on the ground at Kansas City in the opener. PFF has charged the defense with 48 missed tackles through four games. Hampton has 238 yards and three touchdowns, and the Chargers rank 10th in rushing at 121.5 yards per game. Coordinator Mike McDaniel, who has taken some responsibility for the poor start, has used a three-back rotation of Hampton, Keaton Mitchell and Kimani Vidal the last two games.
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More on the Denver Broncos
- Denver Broncos at Los Angeles Chargers NFL Prediction, Picks & Odds for Week 5
- RJ Harvey vs. Chargers Week 5: Three Expectations for Broncos RB
- NFL Insider Reports League Sources Aren’t Blaming Davis Webb for Broncos’ Offensive Struggles
- Broncos Need Bo Nix to Answer the Bell Against Lowly Chargers
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This story was originally published October 11, 2026 at 7:30 AM.