A stoppable force meets an immovable object on Sunday as the 0-5 Chargers head to Arrowhead for a matchup with the 4-0 Chiefs. With Kansas City coming off a bye and Los Angeles reeling after another frustrating loss, there are certainly better conditions for the Chargers earning their first win.
Here are a few reasons to be pessimistic about Los Angeles sneaking out with a victory.
Humming Chiefs defense
Coordinator Steve Spagnuolo has the Chiefs playing at a high level to start the season, as Kansas City enters Sunday ranked 8th in defensive EPA/play through their first four games. (That's one spot ahead of a Broncos squad that just suffocated LA last week, for what it's worth.) First-round rookie Mansoor Delane and second-year corner Nohl Williams have made the transition
away from Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson a smooth one, while the addition of nose tackle Khyiris Tonga has freed up Chris Jones. Kansas City has even found production from former first-round choice Felix Anudike-Uzomah as a designated pass rusher to open the year. Against a struggling Chargers offense, there's plenty of potential for LA to look just as awful as they have in the last few weeks when they have the ball.
Special teams impact
The Chargers are 30th in special teams EPA this season, ahead of only the Titans and Rams (the latter of whom waived kicker Harrison Mevis after a miss and blocked attempt on Monday night). Punt returner Derius Davis is 39th in yardage gained and his 3.8 yards per return are 6.5 yards under the league average this season, but special teams coordinator Ryan Ficken continues to insist that Davis is the best option in that spot. All three of Davis and running backs Kimani Vidal and Keaton Mitchell are below the league average of 26 yards per kick return as well, which has consistently given LA's already anemic offense long fields. With an average Chiefs special teams unit on deck, the Chargers are at risk of dramatically losing the third phase of the game on Sunday.
Lengthy injury report
28 of the 53 players that would have made up Los Angeles' initial roster are either on the injury report or on injured reserve this week, if you count a season-ending training camp injury for center Tyler Biadasz. Just on the offensive line, the Chargers have Biadasz, left tackle Rashawn Slater, and utility linemen Trey Pipkins III and Trevor Penning on IR, with right tackle Joe Alt (neck) and left guard Kayode Awosika (fibula) out. Wide receiver Tre' Harris, cornerback Donte Jackson, and nickel Derwin James Jr. are all out with hamstring injuries. At least the Chargers will get wide receivers Ladd McConkey (foot) and Quentin Johnston (chest) back.
Josh Simmons' potential return
Simmons has been absent from the Chiefs for about a month with a somewhat mysterious back injury, but he returned to practice for Kansas City on Wednesday and has been limited both days this week. If he returns to man his left tackle spot, it bumps undrafted free agent Kahlil Benson out of the starting lineup and makes the matchup much harder for LA's trio of edge rushers. Benson has performed admirably for the circumstances, but Simmons was a high-end tackle when healthy as a rookie last season and would certainly bolster an already very good Chiefs offensive line that has running back Kenneth Walker averaging an eye-popping 6.2 yards per carry this season.
This article originally appeared on Chargers Wire: 4 causes for concern for Chargers against the Chiefs in Week 6
