The Denver Broncos have a must-win game in Week 18 against the Los Angeles Chargers, and if this game is anything like Week 18 in 2024, it's going to be a good time at Mile High. Denver should have a huge advantage in this one, as the Chargers are not playing QB Justin Herbert.
Since LA can't win the AFC West, the logic here is that LA would prefer to give Herbert some much-needed rest instead of trotting him out there in a hostile environment while trying to earn a higher Wild Card seed.
The juice, if you will, is not worth the squeeze for Los Angeles. Let's get into our three bold predictions for the game.
Denver Broncos' bold predictions for Week 18 against the LA Chargers
Bo Nix throws 4 touchdown passes and has 29 for the second season in a row
Bo Nix finished with 29 touchdown passes on the season in 2024, which capped off one of the best rookie seasons by a QB in the history of the NFL. Nix was 26/29 for 321 yards and four touchdowns in Week 18 against the Kansas City Chiefs. This year's Week 18 game has similar circumstances, as the LA Chargers are going to be resting some starters and don't have a ton to play for. Furthermore, despite being 0-3 against the Chargers thus far, Nix has actually been quite efficient against them. Denver's second-year QB, with the help of the home crowd and a mini-bye week, has a four-touchdown performance and reaches the 29 passing touchdown total for the second year in a row.
RJ Harvey has a career-high rushing yardage total
RJ Harvey's career-high rushing yardage total thus far is 75 yards. He'll break that total here in Week 18. I would be shocked if the Broncos didn't come out and try to control the clock in this one. Denver simply has to beat a team at home resting many of their starters, so they shouldn't overcomplicate things here.
Harvey should get a ton of touches and might have the chance to rip-off a couple of big runs, as the Chargers' defense, while stout, lacks notable high-end talent. Whether it's 85 yards or 120 yards, RJ Harvey will run for a career-high total.
Broncos sack Trey Lance at least five times
Trey Lance has attempted 13 passes for the Los Angeles Chargers this year. He's been sacked two times on those 13 attempts, which gives him a sack percentage of 13.33%. For more context, Justin Herbert has been sacked a whopping 54 times this year with 512 passing attempts. That comes out to a sack rate of 9.54%.
While the sample size is a lot smaller, Trey Lance has been sacked at a very high rate this year for the LA Chargers, and with the Bolts clearly having the worst offensive line in the NFL at this point, the Broncos should be able to get to Lance even without blitzing. In Week 18, Denver's pass rush gets to the veteran QB at least five times.