New England at San Diego
When: 8:30 PM ET, Sunday, December 7, 2014
Where: Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, California
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, NBC.
LINE: Patriots -3.5. O/U: 51
PREDICTION: Patriots 30, Chargers 27
Join BetOnline and get up to $1,000 BONUS

Oddsmakers currently have the Patriots listed as 3-point favorites versus the Chargers, while the game’s total is sitting at 50½.

San Diego’s playoff hopes appeared to take a major hit following a 37-0 drubbing in Miami entering its bye week, but it has bounced back with three straight narrow victories to move within one game of the first-place Broncos in the AFC West. Rivers, who leads the AFC in completion percentage at 69.1, had three TD passes and threw for a season-high 383 yards in the improbable victory over the Ravens. Wideout Keenan Allen, who has struggled to maintain consistency following a superb rookie season, had a pair of touchdown catches among his career-high 11 receptions while going over 100 yards for the second straight week. Ryan Mathews has rushed for 215 yards and two TDs since returning from injury but the defense has permitted 57 points in the past two games.

Last time out for San Diego, they were a 34-33 winner as they battled the Ravens on the road. The Chargers covered in the match as a +6.5-point underdog, while 67 combined points moved the game OVER for totals bettors.

Team record: 8-4 SU,6-6 ATS
Current Streak: won 3 straight games.
San Diego is 1-6 ATS in its last 7 games
San Diego is 8-3 SU in its last 11 games
San Diego is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games at home
San Diego is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing New England

New England averaged 39.6 points during its winning streak but was forced to abandon the running game and play catch-up against the Packers, who held the ball for 36 1/2 minutes. While Brady has thrown 28 touchdowns passes versus only six interceptions, the Patriots are only 3-3 on the road and the two-time Super Bowl MVP has been limited to 257 yards or less in five of those games. Tight end Rob Gronkowski has 32 receptions and five touchdowns over the past five games and Brandon LaFell caught a pair of scoring passes last week, but New England must find a way to pressure Rivers. The Patriots were unable to generate any pass rush against Rodgers, who threw for 282 yards in the first half alone as Green Bay racked up 478 yards of total offense.

New England lost its last outing, a 26-21 result against the Packers on November 30. The Patriots failed to cover in that game as a +1.5-point underdog, while the 47 combined points took the game UNDER the total.

Team record: 9-3 SU,7-5 ATS
New England is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
New England is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
The total has gone OVER in 7 of New England’s last 9 games
New England is 5-11-1 ATS in its last 17 games on the road

The post New England vs. San Diego Preview appeared first on IdealCapper.