San Diego Chargers vs Jacksonville Jaguars: Spread Analysis and Pick Prediction

San Diego is 1-7 SU and 2-5-1 ATS in its last eight games following a SU victory. This week, the Chargers are coming off a nice win at home over the Indianapolis Colts on Monday night and will do the short-week/cross-country thing, visiting the winless Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.

Point Spread: Chargers opened as 10-point favorites; the total was 45, per OddsShark.com.

Computer Prediction: 21.3-2.3 Chargers

Why the Chargers Can Cover the Spread

San Diego is 3-3 under new head coach Mike McCoy, and they are 4-1-1 ATS. The Chargers have beaten Philadelphia, Dallas and Indianapolis, none of which are below .500 at the moment.

San Diego ranks sixth in the league in total offense, and while the defense only ranks 21st, it just held Andrew Luck and the Colts to three field goals Monday night.

But is the total the safest bet here? All five career meetings between these two franchises have played OVER the total, and the Chargers have played OVER in 13 of the past 14 seasons before a bye week, according OddsShark.com.

Why the Jags Can Cover the Spread

Jacksonville is 0-6 on the season and 1-5 ATS. They also rank dead last in offense and dead last in run defense. So it's hard to find the silver lining in this cloud.

But the Jags did just give the vaunted Broncos a fairly tough game in Denver on Sunday, covering easily as 26-point underdogs with help from an interception returned for a score.

Jacksonville also stayed competitive in their contests against Oakland and St. Louis earlier this season, and 10 points can still be a lot in the NFL.

Smart Pick

The OddsShark computer is predicting an easy San Diego victory and cover, and they are also predicting an UNDER. But the Jaguars may have found a little something—heart, perhaps—in Denver, and the Chargers are coming into the Eastern Time Zone for a game that starts at 10 a.m. on the West Coast.

Also, San Diego is on the stock market trend, up one week and down the next. The Chargers were up Monday night, so take the home-dog Jags and the OVER.

Trends:

San Diego is 4-1-1 ATS in its last six games on the road.

Jacksonville is 1-17 SU in its last 18 games.

Note: All spread and odds data powered by Odds Shark. Follow them on Twitter for injury updates and line move updates.