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Predicting the Final Score of San Diego Chargers vs. Baltimore Ravens

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In Week 13, the San Diego Chargers will fly across the country to take on the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium. It will be a battle of teams in the playoff hunt, as both sides hold a record of 7-4 heading into the home stretch of the NFL season.

Current owners of the final Wild Card spot, the Chargers enter a brutal five-week schedule where they’ll meet the likes of the Ravens, New England Patriots, Denver Broncos, San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs. San Diego will hit the road for three of those games and a win to start the stretch would go a long way.

The Ravens, on the other hand, are facing a much easier schedule as they’ll travel to play the Miami Dolphins and the Houston Texans while welcoming the Jacksonville Jaguars and Cleveland Browns to Baltimore. It is reasonable to say that winning against the Chargers would allow the Ravens to stay ahead of their cross-country foes for the remainder of the season.

San Diego hasn’t looked overly impressive after getting mauled by a 37-0 line in a visit to Miami in Week 9. They’ve recovered to win their last two contests, but a 13-6 result over the Oakland Raiders and squeaking out a 27-24 decision over the St. Louis Rams — both at home, no less — leave much to be desired.

Since dropping an ugly 43-23 result to their bitter rival Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 9, the Ravens have recovered nicely to claim a 21-7 victory over the Tennessee Titans at home and an impressive 34-27 on the road against the New Orleans Saints. Veteran running back Justin Forsett ran wild for 182 yards to pace the Ravens in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome after offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak stuck with the run in the second half despite being down at halftime.

The Chargers will experience a bit of luck while traveling to the east, as Baltimore’s Sunday forecast calls for partly cloudy, 55-degree conditions to combat the heavy midweek snowfall in Baltimore. That won’t help an early morning local kickoff time for the San Diego natives, making a sluggish start all too possible.

Although he scored a pair of touchdowns, the Ravens can take comfort in knowing they limited Saints tight end Jimmy Graham to just 47 yards receiving after a fantastic performance from safety Will Hill held the superstar in check. They’ll look for similar results against another big-time tight end in Antonio Gates, who has been underwhelming in his last three performances, bringing in just 74 yards on eight receptions in those games combined.

San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers has faced plenty of pressure in his last three outings, getting sacked eight times while only throwing for two touchdowns and four interceptions. He won’t expect that pressure to relent in Week 13 as the Ravens boast one of the most feared front sevens in the league. Rivers will have to be calm under pressure and take care of the football if the Chargers want to have a shot at winning this game.

Forsett will look to have another big game as he lines up against a defense that allows 4.4 yards per carry and over 100 rushing yards per game. His big day in Week 12 set up an efficient game through the air from quarterback Joe Flacco, who completed 75 percent of his passes for 243 yards and a touchdown. A common factor in their success on the ground and through the air was an outstanding performance from the offensive line, which did not allow a sack while consistently opening up gaping holes for Forsett.

The Ravens are playing better football than the Chargers right now, and the home-field advantage will make it incredibly difficult for the visitors to pull out a victory, barring a massive improvement from recent weeks.

West coast teams generally don’t play well when traveling to the east, as the time difference and colder conditions are difficult to overcome. This game will be no exception, and the Ravens will catapult to the front of the Wild Card discussion after a win at home with the AFC North division crown still well in reach.

Prediction: Ravens 27, Chargers 17

Brenden McLaughlin is a Baltimore Ravens writer for www.Rantsports.com. Follow him on Twitter @b_maction or add him to your network on Google.

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