Chargers on a roll for their showdown with Broncos

Ron Borges

• Last Updated: November 21. 2009 9:50PM UAE / November 21. 2009 5:50PM GMT

The San Diego Chargers’ Malcolm Floyd makes a 53-yard reception against the Oakland Raiders. Denis Poroy / AP Photo

A month ago, the San Diego Chargers’ chances of making the NFL play-offs seemed remote and the Denver Broncos looked as though they were going to canter into the post-season.

The impressive Broncos had won their first six games.

The less-than-impressive Chargers had lost three of their first five.

How things can change.

The Broncos have lost their last three, the Chargers have won their last four, and when they meet today in a battle for first place in the AFC West they will take identical 6-3 records into the game. But the momentum is all with San Diego, and their prospects will be helped by the fact the Denver quarterback, Kyle Orton, has a bad ankle and a dwindling number of believers in his ability to survive on guile and short passes.

Orton missed the Broncos’ practice on Wednesday, but says he hopes to be in the starting line up today. If Denver are to have a realistic chance of getting back on track, Orton will need to start, to be fit and to be at the top of his game. His backup, Chris Simms, does not come close to matching the Chargers’ quarterback Philip Rivers’ passing skills.

An even bigger issue is that the weak links in Denver’s once stingy defence have been exposed in their last three games. This has been in part because of their lack of size but in larger measure because the offence’s lack of production has kept them on the field too long.

Elsewhere, the New England Patriots (6-3) can eliminate one division rival if they defeat the New York Jets (4-5).

The Jets battered the Patriots in the second week of the season, hounding their quarterback Tom Brady with an array of blitzes and shutting down the explosive wide receiver Randy Moss.

By the time the game was over the Jets appeared to be soaring while the Patriots had many questions to answer, but here, too, much has changed.

After starting 3-0, the Jets have lost five of their last six games and their quarterback, Mark Sanchez, has begun to play like the rookie he is. The Jets have asked too much of him with predictable results.

The Patriots, meanwhile, have returned to their old selves, winning five of the last seven.

Brady is on pace for another record-breaking season, while Moss is coming off a game in which he had 179 receiving yards and two touchdowns.

The New England defence, though not what it once was, has allowed the second fewest points in the league.

Another interesting statistic: the Patriots, who lost by a point to Indianapolis last weekend, are 20-1 in games following a defeat since Brady became QB.

The New York Giants (5-4) will be trying to right their sinking ship against the visiting Atlanta Falcons (5-4).

The Falcons’ quarterback, Matt Ryan, has been struggling for a month and the loss of the running back Michael Turner with an ankle sprain compounds his problems.

New York should be fresh after two weeks without playing, but they have an alarming 5-15 record in games coming off a rest since the bye week was introduced.

The miraculously still undefeated Indianapolis Colts (9-0) are coming off a remarkable comeback win over the Patriots to face a desperate Baltimore Ravens (5-4) team who must win to keep their season alive.

The Colts lead the NFL in fewest points allowed and their quarterback, Peyton Manning, will be eager to get a shot at Baltimore’s weak secondary.

Indianapolis have won six in a row against the Ravens, many of those games against a far more formidable defence than this one.

There is little reason to think they will not make it seven.

The hapless Washington Redskins (3-6) will try to stun a second consecutive high-profile opponent when they face the Dallas Cowboys (6-3).

But do not count on a repeat of last weekend’s upset of the Broncos. Man-to-man the Cowboys are superior even with injury problems at tackle.

Washington struggle to stop the pass and Dallas love to throw it – not a promising combination for the Redskins.

The Philadelphia Eagles (5-4) and the Chicago Bears (4-5) are fighting to stay in the NFC play-off race.

The Eagles have the better chance. They are a sounder team and less prone to turnovers. But the Bears’ quarterback, Jay Cutler, will surely stop throwing interceptions one of these days.

The undefeated New Orleans Saints (9-0) have turned the ball over 13 times in the past month and must be mindful not to look beyond the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-8) toward a showcase Monday night game the following week against the Patriots.

Having said that, the Saints should win in a canter.

The streaking Tennessee Titans (3-6) have won their last three, mostly because of their running back Chris Johnson, who has predicted seven more wins and an improbable return to the play-offs.

To have a chance they have to beat the Houston Texans (5-4) and Johnson has to play as he did the first time they met, when he had TD runs of 91 and 57 yards.

rborges@thenational.ae