***SWAMP SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER - LAC @ KC***

***LOS ANGELES CHARGERS @ KANSAS CITY CHIEFS***

Oh baby oh baby, Saturday NFL is back and ya gotta love it! I've been out and about playing SwampaClaus today so I was unable to draft up a writeup for the early game between the Bears and Lions. The Swamp pick was made via twitter handle @swampy_swami and the Lions-5 looks to be holding on strong at the moment with about 6 minutes to go as Detroit leads 20-3. Tonight's showdown in the wild, wild, AFC West is what we are really waiting for today as the surging Los Angeles Chargers head into dreaded Arrowhead Stadium to take on their rival the Kansas City Chiefs in a game that will determine the division leader and most likely, the division winner. These two teams currently stand with a 7-6 record despite having literally started on opposite ends of the spectrum and are now about to high-five each other as they pass by one another. The Chiefs began this season 5-0, looking like the best team in the league and defeated the Chargers during that run in their first meeting back in week 3 by a final score of 24-10. The Chargers on the other hand began winless with an 0-4 record as their bad voodoo in close games along with injuries carried over from last season and continued to haunt them. It wasn't until they faced another winless team in the Giants that they were finally able to pull some sort of black magic transfer to give the Giants all their bad and unlucky mojo. After that first ice-breaking win, they rattled off a 6-2 record and are currently on a four game winning streak. Kansas City was just about at rock bottom after losing 6 out of their next 8 games following their undefeated start. Last week they were able to smack up the lowly Oakland Raiders at home and looked pretty damn good doing so. I have to take that W with a big grain of salt though because the Raiders are just plain awful at the moment and have something seriously wrong with them going on behind the scenes I believe, on top of having the worst secondary in the NFL. That being said, the Chiefs handled business as they should've in a game that they absolutely needed if they wanted to remain alive having already dropped the previous game in Oakland earlier this season. So now here they are, hosting the red hot Chargers, whom they are facing for the second time around, but under much different circumstances, in a game that means everything.

If you've been following me long enough, you'll know that every season I am pretty high on this Chargers team. They seem to be my darkhorse season after season, and every time I am left disappointed due to injuries and plain 'ol rotten luck in tight games. However this season seems different. It's December 16th, and the Bolts are finally in a groove and looking like the team that I've always felt they can be if healthy. Head Coach Anthony Lynn needs to be commended in his first year at the helm regardless of the result this season as he managed to completely turn this team around and get these guys believing after such a rough start. The real kicker is the move from San Diego to Los Angeles, and the fact that they haven't even really had a true home field this season. Through it all, they have managed to remain almost completely healthy, and are getting hot at the right time. QB Philip Rivers is one of my favorites and I have always admired his fire and competitiveness. I also always believed that the dude is due for a Super Bowl run before he hangs them up, at least an appearance, he's too good and has done too much to not get a taste of the big show. That being said, the window for that opportunity is obviously closing. Could this be the year? I believe it in fact very well might be, but shhhhhh Swampy let's not get ahead of ourselves here. First things first, they must win this game tonight and seize the division lead. After being out with an injury for an extended period of time, the way LA WR Keenan Allen has come alive these past couple of weeks, it seems as though the magic between he and Rivers is officially back, and that spells severe trouble for defenses. The Chiefs will get their best DB Marcus Peters back tonight who I'm sure will be matching up with Keenan often in this one. Frankly, the Chargers just have way too many options for KC to handle on the backend. They signed veteran Darrelle Revis recently in a desperate attempt to help bolster up the holes they have in the secondary but I believe it won't be enough here tonight. Rivers just has way too many options with Williams, Benjamin, Gates, Henry, and one shouldn't sleep on the Rookie WR Mike Williams slowly but surely coming along as well. Couple that with RB Melvin Gordon and the threat he poses in the running game and this might be one of the most potent offenses there is. The offensive line has done a great job of keeping Rivers upright during the second half of the season and they've been rolling on all cylinders during this recent win streak, beating up on teams that are less than them. Those wins are still great confidence builders though when stringed along like that and starting the season so poorly. It has provided that spark the Chargers have been searching for and needed for so long. That all being said, the best part about this team is their defense! Defensive Coordinator Gus Bradley has these guys looking and playing like his young Seattle defense that he helped grow into one of the best units in the NFL. They have true playmakers at every level of the unit and it begins up front with the dominating pass rush of their bookends Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram who may arguably be the best pass rushing dup in the league.

The Chiefs have really struggled once the blueprint was laid down on how to slow down and stop their flash in a pan offense. I mentioned how I believed that would eventually happen in my writeup the night they lost to Oakland, because in the NFL it always does. These Defensive Coordinators are too smart to not figure out how to slow down and take away what you do best. However Head Coach Andy Reid has recently passed the play-calling duties to Offensive Coordinator Matt Nagy and since then the Chiefs offense has been looking more like the team we saw early on this year. There was a time during a four game losing streak where the inevitable clamoring for Rookie QB Pat Mahomes to start began, but Smitty boy is clearly not ready to hand over the keys as he has upped his game during the passed two weeks. When it comes down to it I think the Chiefs will play well and get theirs tonight, simply because they have way too many playmakers on offense to not put up some points at home in a such a big game. However, I do not think it will be enough to keep up with this Chargers team that seems to be peaking at the moment and on a mission from the God of Lightning Zues himself. The Chiefs just do not have the defense to get it done if the Chargers play mistake free football tonight and in my opinion the Chargers are one of the most well-rounded teams in the NFL and they are finally realizing it. I will side with the better team here, in a match where goal number 1 (division lead) is in their grasps. Yes Arrowhead is no place anybody wants to play, but for whatever reason it is only like 50 degrees or so in KC tonight, so the frigid temperatures are not a factor in this one. That is HUGE for this west coast team and I believe will diminish the mystique and edge of Arrowhead tonight. The Chiefs have won the last 7 games between the two if I'm not mistaken, it's time for some payback and what a spot to do it in! I picked the Chargers to win this Division before the season began and I doubled down on that statement even when they were in last place early on. It's happening, or maybe I am just delusional, but I think they get it done and establish themselves as a serious contender in the AFC, letting New England and Pittsburgh know they need to make some room. CHARGERS-1