It's only Week 3 of the regular season and people are leaning on standard NFL clichés like "trap games" and "desperate teams."
One of those forlorn teams is the 0-2 Los Angeles Chargers, who come to Highmark Stadium on Sept. 27 to face the 2-0 Buffalo Bills.
Just one NFL expert, Senior Writer Frank Schwab at yahoo!sports, out of 14 surveyed thinks the struggling Bolts have a shot against the Bills and Josh Allen. You'll hear more from Schwab in a moment, but he says it's now or never (another sports cliché) for quarterback Justin Herbert and his Chargers teammates.
We'll see how that works out.
Bills vs. Chargers odds, money line, over/under
(Odds as of Thursday afternoon)
- Moneyline: Bills -350 (bet $350 to win $100), Chargers +275 (bet $100 to win $275).
- Spread: Bills by 7
- Over/under: 50
Sal Maiorana, Democrat and Chronicle
Bills 30, Chargers 21: "Given the dire straits the Chargers have put themselves in with their 0-2 start, the Bills figure
to get a highly motivated and desperate team coming to Highmark Stadium, so this one will probably be a close game most of the way. The Chargers’ defense has some talented pieces and it just stifled talented Raiders RB Ashton Jeanty at 2.3 yards per carry. However, the 38-year-old Cousins went 19 of 29 for 253 yards and three TDs, so imagine what Josh Allen might be able to do, especially if DJ Moore can return to play.
"Defensively, the Bills are still trying to come together after getting torched for 62 points in the first two games, and Herbert is certainly a dangerous player if he gets on a roll, but the Chargers may be withouttwo injured TEs in this game, and their offensive line is struggling right now, and that’s a concern."
Adam Kaufman, USA Today
Bills 34, Chargers 24: "Early MVP favorite Josh Allen is simply playing at another level. He and reigning NFL rushing champion James Cook have an excellent matchup against a Chargers defense that had trouble getting the Cardinals' and Raiders' offenses off the field. Even if DJ Moore misses the game with his sprained AC joint, Buffalo has more than enough firepower at home to cruise. Los Angeles has opened the season with consecutive 26-14 losses, and Justin Herbert looks completely out of sorts in Mike McDaniel's offense. Granted, after years of coaching the Dolphins, McDaniel is plenty familiar with the Bills. But that familiarity only matters if his play-calling translates into results. Herbert needs to start executing before we can take the Chargers seriously against the league's elite."
NFL experts jump on bandwagon: 6 early Bills vs. Chargers predictions
Frank Schwab, yahoo!sports
Chargers (+7) over Bills: "If there are any signs of life in the Chargers this season, we'll see it Sunday. They've been awful. But this line first opened at Bills -3 and jumped up four points the last couple weeks. It's justified based on how both teams have looked so far. But it is also a reminder that the full touchdown is a lot. The Chargers are entering an excruciating part of their schedule and have to know that it's now or never if they're going to save their season."
Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz, USA Today
Bills 35, Chargers 24: "The Chargers' reward for flubbing their first two matchups against opponents that had a combined six wins last season is … A road date with the Bills. Good luck, Jim Harbaugh. Maybe a Buffalo defense that's been picked apart in the early going could help Mike McDaniel's off-kilter attack find its stride, but there's little chance that Los Angeles can fully keep pace with Josh Allen. After giving up a combined 50 points through the first two weeks, the Chargers' defense could be approaching a breaking point against a Bills team that will be sure to strain it vertically in the passing attack as well as in the ground game."
Tyler Sullivan, CBS SPORTS
Bills 31, Chargers 20: "The Chargers feel like they're lost at the moment. They've dropped back-to-back games they should've won if we were looking at it solely from a talent standpoint. In fact, they are the first team ever to start 0-2, with both losses coming against teams that lost 14 or more games the previous season. And we're supposed to expect them to march into Buffalo and take down Josh Allen and the Bills? Jim Harbaugh and the defense just let Kirk Cousins throw for 253 yards through the air and three touchdowns. Allen is on an MVP trajectory over his first two games, totaling nine touchdowns. He's a freight train, and it feels like the Chargers will be his next victim. Meanwhile, Justin Herbert hasn't shown much through the first two games. The offense is averaging 14 points per game, and Herbert is being pressured at the second-highest rate (46%) in the NFL this season, despite being blitzed at the fifth-lowest rate (23%). He's struggled mightily on throws that have traveled 10-plus air yards, throwing just one touchdown and three interceptions on such throws. This feels like it could get ugly."
Nate Davis, USA Today
Bills 26, Chargers 14: "Neither team has played much defense this season, though the Bills, under the watch of new coordinator Jim Leonhard, have at least made a handful of critical plays on the way to their 2-0 start. Unfortunately for the winless Bolts, they're not playing much offense, either – so rather difficult to see how they bow up against early MVP frontrunner Josh Allen, who's already accounted for nine touchdowns himself this season … Five more than the Chargers have collectively."
Mike Florio, Pro Football Talk
Bills 34, Chargers 20: "It would be fitting for the Chargers to dig deep and to stun the Bills, especially as the pressure to get a win increases. But the Bills are still basking in the glow of their new building, and the Chargers have done little to inspire confidence that they can fly across the country to beat a team that had three extra days to prepare."
Richard Morin, USA Today
Bills 23, Chargers 20: "It's been a rough start for the Chargers and things aren't getting any easier with a formidable road matchup against the Bills and an early start for the Los Angeles side. Look, the Chargers will string together some wins eventually but it's hard to see that trend beginning in Buffalo. Josh Allen and Co. have looked solid and had a few extra days of rest following their 41-point outburst in Week 2 on Thursday Night Football. All signs point toward a Bills victory."
Vic Tafur, The Athletic
Bills win: "Am I to believe that Jim Harbaugh and Justin Herbert just became terrible at their jobs overnight? That the Chargers can’t keep it close? Maybe their film is so bad that the well-rested Bills (10 days since playing on TNF) are looking ahead to Week 4 against the Patriots … Nah. Unless the Chargers’ receivers had hand transplants and their offensive linemen added some muscle in the last week, they are toast.
"Herbert is being pressured at the second-highest rate (46 percent), and he is not even being blitzed (fifth-lowest rate at 23 percent). The Bills’ Greg Rousseau is having a great start to the season and will feast.
"The pick: Bills"
Sal Maiorana has covered the Buffalo Bills for more than four decades including 37 years as the full-time beat writer/columnist for the D&C. He has written numerous books about the history of the team, and he is also co-host of the BLEAV in Bills podcast/YouTube show. He can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com, and you can follow him on X @salmaiorana and on Bluesky @salmaiorana.bsky.social.
Bill Wolcott is a producer who helps cover the Buffalo Bills, high school and Rochester sports in general. The lifelong New Yorker has been a journalist for 32 years.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: 8 more Bills vs. Chargers predictions, scores, odds for Week 3 game
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