Chargers vs. 49ers: Previewing San Diego's Preseason Week 4 Matchup

The San Diego Chargers will play their last game of the preseason Thursday against the host San Francisco 49ers.

With Week 1 of the regular season to follow soon after, San Diego is not expected to play starters, and the same could go for San Francisco. Standard procedure for the fourth preseason game is to play backups and see what you have at the back end of the roster, since the deadline to cut the roster down to 53 players is Saturday.

The Chargers released 11 players over the weekend and placed four on the reserve-injured list to get down from 90 to 75. In the days to follow after Thursday's game against the 49ers, another 22 will get the boot.

For more on the Bolts' preseason finale, click ahead.

Location: Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara, California

Time: 7 p.m. PDT

TV: NFL Network

Preseason Week 3 Results and Recap

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The Seattle Seahawks eked out a 16-15 win over the Chargers on Steven Hauschka's 60-yard field goal with 16 seconds remaining in Week 3.

Philip Rivers saw the heaviest workload among the quarterbacks, competing for all of two quarters with the starters. He went 13-of-19 for 140 yards and led the offense on two field-goal drives.

Rookie Melvin Gordon, who sat out the previous game with a minor ankle injury, had 34 rushing yards on 14 carries, and Branden Oliver collected his third touchdown of the preseason on a screen pass from Kellen Clemens that was good for 70 yards.

Stevie Johnson ran good routes, got open and looked comfortable catching passes from Rivers. He had four catches totaling 63 yards, including a well-executed pattern across the middle of the field that picked up 34 yards.

The Chargers' first-team defense, which has looked impressive since the start of the preseason, chalked up another solid outing, limiting Russell Wilson and Seattle's first-team offense to a field goal in the first half.

Rookie linebacker Kyle Emanuel, who has been getting work in with the ones, picked up his second sack of the preseason, as did undrafted free agent Nick Dzubnar. And for the second straight game, Dzubnar led the team in tackles; he has 18 through three games.

News and Notes

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Lambo Survives First Cuts, Kicking Battle Still On

Because rookie Josh Lambo was not among the first wave of cuts, we can assume the Chargers want to allow the competition between him and Nick Novak to play out a little longer. Novak told Bernie Wilson of the Associated Press after the Seattle game that he fully expects to be handling the kicking duties come Week 1 of the regular season, but with Lambo around for at least a couple of more days, Novak will have to earn it outright.

Novak is 3-of-3 on his attempts with a long of 52 yards, while Lambo is 4-of-4 with a long of 53 yards.

Chargers in Good Health Before the Regular Season

Head coach Mike McCoy has done well to keep his core players in good health ahead of the regular season. There are no major injuries to report, except that defensive end Tenny Palepoi will miss the entire season with a broken foot and linebacker Tourek Williams (foot) and offensive lineman Johnnie Troutman will be out for some time. The Chargers encountered some bumps and bruises along the way, but McCoy's decision to rest certain players each week seems to have paid off.

It's possible we may see a few starters take the field for a series or two against the 49ers, but it's more than likely McCoy continues to take a conservative approach to the preseason.

Latest Injury News

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Linebacker Manti Te'o (shoulder) and wide receiver Dontrelle Inman (concussion) returned to practice this week after sitting out last week, including the game against the Seahawks. Beyond that, there isn't much to report.

Tourek Williams and Johnnie Troutman are still far out from returning to action, and cornerback Chris Davis, who had been out with a concussion he suffered in the first preseason game, was among those to be placed on the reserve-injured list.

Key Matchups

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Chargers Front Seven vs. 49ers Rushing Attack

The 49ers are averaging five yards per carry in the preseason, which is tops across the league, and former rugby star Jarryd Hayne is leading the team with 117 yards through the first three games, followed by fourth-round draft pick Mike Davis with 80 yards.

The Chargers appear to be getting better at containing the run, so far limiting opponents to 3.6 yards per carry, but San Francisco's backfield will be a good measuring stick.

Chargers' Passing Game vs. 49ers Secondary

Kellen Clemens and Brad Sorensen had better be mindful of San Francisco's secondary, which has picked off four passes in the preseason. The Chargers have not thrown the ball a lot (99 passing attempts), but Coach McCoy might have Clemens and Sorensen air it out more on Saturday in an attempt to determine who should be the backup to Rivers.

Clemens appears to be the front-runner, being the veteran that he is, but Sorensen has shown poise at times in previous exhibition games.

Matchup X-Factors

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Chargers' X-Factor of the Week: Nick Dzubnar

Everything about Dzubnar says blue collar, from his bare-hands look to the way he handles business on the field. And because he's made his presence felt on defense and special teams, the rookie linebacker out of Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo has helped his chances of making the 53-man roster come Saturday.

The Chargers will need another big game out of Dzubnar if they have any chance of bottling up the 49ers running game, and it doesn't hurt that he's a decent pass-rusher from his inside linebacker spot. Look for Dzubnar to shine in the last game of the preseason, which may or may not be his last with the Chargers.

Prediction: Chargers 16, 49ers 13

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Thursday's clash between the Chargers and 49ers has the makings of tightly contested battle, just as it was last week when San Diego took on Seattle. And despite the likely absence of starters, this should still be an entertaining game to watch at home because of what's at stake for these players.

The dream of making an NFL roster could end by the weekend, so the pressure to do well is on. The 49ers are deep defensively with a lot of young talent picked up through the draft, and they certainly have the backfield to succeed offensively, but I'm picking the Chargers to hold onto a slight lead and close out the preseason on a high note.

Prediction: Chargers 16, 49ers 13

All stats courtesy of NFL.com.