Chargers vs. Rams Week 8 Preview: The 0-6 Bolts Bring a Bye-Week Reboot to Stafford's Rams

The Chargers spent their bye week doing what every frustrated fantasy manager does on a Tuesday: staring at the tape until something made sense. Mike McDaniel said he and Justin Herbert logged four hours of film together across two sessions, per the team's website, and Jim Harbaugh said this week the staff went after "every stone" it could find. Now the league's only winless team gets to show off the remodel against a Rams team that badly needs a win of its own.

Kickoff is Sunday at 4:05 p.m. ET at SoFi Stadium on Fox, with the Rams (3-4) as the designated home team in the building both franchises share. The Chargers (0-6) also own the league's lowest-scoring offense. Matthew Stafford, asked this week about a crosstown matchup that only comes around every four years, kept it light. "It's a big town to cross," Stafford said with a grin.

A Harbaugh Streak on the Line and a Rams Team With No Margin

The last time Harbaugh lost seven in a row, he was the one taking snaps, for a 2000 San Diego Chargers team that went 1-15, per the AP. That is what Sunday is about for the Bolts. Their problems sit almost entirely on offense: they rank dead last in scoring at 15.0 points per game and have committed a league-high 15 turnovers, per the team's website, and Herbert has absorbed 21 sacks. Harbaugh kept McDaniel as the play-caller anyway. "We're very confident in Mike, his talent, his work ethic, his ability," Harbaugh said Wednesday, per chargers.com. McDaniel's own pitch was simpler: "Hopefully we'll show the dividends on Sunday."

The Rams entered the season as Super Bowl favorites and now sit third in the NFC West behind San Francisco (6-1) and Seattle (4-3). Last week's 35-21 win at Las Vegas snapped a two-game skid, and history says the hole is deep but climbable: of the 41 teams to start 3-4 since the playoffs went to 14 teams in 2020, 10 got in, per the AP. A home loss to a winless team would make that math a lot uglier. Sean McVay is not buying the record, though. "I really couldn't care less what the record says," McVay said this week. "I see a team that's really good."

Khalil Mack vs. the Rams' Tackles

The AP flagged the battle that matters most: Chargers edge rushers Khalil Mack and Akheem Mesidor against Rams tackles Warren McClendon Jr. and Alaric Jackson. Mack leads the Bolts with three sacks, and the defense has to keep this game in the teens for an offense that has scored 90 points all season. Pressure is the only real answer to Stafford, whose offense leads the NFL in total yardage behind the league's most productive passing game.

The flip side is Herbert's protection against Byron Young, who leads the Rams with 4.5 sacks. The Chargers will be without starting left guard Kayode Awosika, and nobody has scored a first-quarter touchdown on the Rams' defense yet this season, per the AP. If McDaniel's bye-week tweaks are real, the opening drives will tell us. Both defenses are stingy on third down, too, with the Rams fifth in the league and the Chargers sixth.

Four Players Who Decide It

• Matthew Stafford, Rams QB: An NFL-best 1,989 passing yards with 14 touchdowns and seven interceptions. His three scoring throws in Las Vegas made him the Rams' career leader in touchdown passes with 155.
• Puka Nacua, Rams WR: 45 catches for 485 yards and two touchdowns. No active streak in the league beats his run of 15 straight games with five or more catches, and he posted eight grabs for 68 yards and a score last week.
• Justin Herbert, Chargers QB: 107 of 180 for 1,141 yards, five touchdowns and eight interceptions. He defended his coordinator this week: "It's not his fault. It's our fault as an offense," Herbert said Wednesday, per the team's website.
• Kyren Williams, Rams RB: 492 yards and five touchdowns on 96 carries. He and Blake Corum combined for 192 rushing yards at Las Vegas, and that tandem is how the Rams keep Mack honest.

The Injury Ledger

Per the team injury report, Rams long snapper Joe Cardona (ankle) is doubtful, while cornerback Trent McDuffie (groin), wide receiver Jordan Whittington (back), tight end Colby Parkinson (ribs) and center Coleman Shelton (hip) are listed as questionable. McDuffie has missed the last two games, and McVay said the team is "hopeful" about him, per the Rams' website. Linebacker Nate Landman, the team's leading tackler with 51, carries no designation and is in line to return.

For the Chargers, guard Kayode Awosika (lower leg), cornerback Deane Leonard (concussion) and wide receiver Brenen Thompson (quadriceps) are out, and cornerback Donte Jackson (hamstring) is questionable. Safety Derwin James Jr. (hamstring) is also unavailable.

Numbers That Matter

• DraftKings lists the Rams as a 6.5-point favorite with a total of 45.5, via ESPN, as of Saturday.
• ESPN's matchup predictor gives the Rams a 74.4 percent chance to win.
• The Chargers are 0-5-1 against the spread this season, per the AP. The Rams are 3-4.
• The Rams are 1-2 at SoFi Stadium this season, and the Chargers are 0-3.
• The Rams lead the all-time series 7-6, but the Chargers won the last meeting 31-10 on Jan. 1, 2023, in Inglewood.

Our Call

Our pick: Rams 26, Chargers 17. The Chargers' defense is good enough to make this uncomfortable for a half, and Mack against the Rams' tackles is a real problem for Stafford. But a bye week can only fix so much when an offense ranks last in scoring and turnovers. Stafford has Nacua, a two-back rotation that just ran wild in Las Vegas and a defense that has owned first quarters. Until the Chargers prove they can finish drives, we are not picking them to snap the skid against a team this desperate.

Odds from DraftKings via ESPN as of Oct. 31. Injury statuses from team reports via ESPN and therams.com. Quotes as reported by the Associated Press and chargers.com.