Kickoff: Thursday, 8:25 p.m. ET
Line: Denver -8, Total: 51

The Chargers look to get back in the win column on Thursday night when they visit a red-hot Broncos team in search of a fourth straight victory.

San Diego hosted Kansas City in Week 7 and lost 23-20 on a game-winning field goal by Cairo Santos with just 21 seconds remaining. Meanwhile, Denver steamrolled San Francisco in a 42-17 home victory last week. Broncos QB Peyton Manning became the NFL’s all-time leader in touchdown passes during that game, but he is just 3-8 ATS versus the Chargers in his career, while San Diego QB Philip Rivers is 11-6 ATS versus Denver. Since 2012, the Broncos are 2-1 SU when hosting in this series, but the Chargers are 2-0-1 ATS in those games. Denver has won five of the past six games between these teams SU. Over the past two seasons, San Diego is 11-3 ATS as an underdog, and the club is also 14-5 ATS off one or more consecutive Unders over the past three seasons. The Broncos, however, are 19-6 ATS as a favorite of 3.5 to 9.5 points over this same timeframe. They’re also 21-8 ATS in games played on a grass field during that time. CBs Brandon Flowers (concussion) and Jason Verrett (shoulder) are both questionable to return for the Chargers in this game, while RBs Donald Brown (concussion) and Ryan Mathews (knee) remain out. RB Montee Ball (groin) will likely miss this game for the Broncos, but should be back in Week 9.

Can the Chargers slow down the high-powered Broncos offense? For the answer, connect to NFL Best Bets for all the StatFox Experts picks throughout the 2014 regular season and playoffs. The experts have remained hot over the past five weeks, combining for a 58% ATS mark (45-33). StatFox Scott is 70% ATS (14-6) in Best Bets during this timeframe, and 61% ATS (17-11) on the season. StatFox Dave is 64% ATS (14-8) in Best Bets during these five weeks to improve to 56% ATS (18-14) on the season, while StatFox Brian has gone 59% ATS (10-7) in NFL Best Bets since Week 3, and continues to roll in NFL Totals with a stellar 71% record (15-6) for the season.

The Chargers had a golden opportunity to make a statement in their division, but they were unable to hold off the Chiefs last week. QB Philip Rivers (1,961 pass yards, 17 TD, 3 INT) had his worst game of the season, going 17-of-31 for 205 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. The quarterback wasn’t as accurate as he has been this season, but he should be able to bounce back against this extremely beatable Broncos’ secondary. After back-to-back games with over 100 rushing yards, RB Branden Oliver (316 rush yards, 2 TD) gained just 67 yards on 15 carries (4.5 YPC) last week. The Broncos’ defensive line has done a solid job of stopping the run this season, so this matchup is not favorable for the Chargers’ backup. TE Antonio Gates (27 rec, 363 yards, 7 TD) continues to fight off Father Time, catching three passes for 61 yards and a touchdown in the loss to the Chiefs. He’ll need to work the middle of the field successfully if the Chargers are going to win in Denver. San Diego is allowing just 209.6 passing yards per game (3rd in NFL) and 106.9 rushing yards per game (13th in NFL). They’ll likely allow the Broncos to run the ball in order to have extra pass coverage.

Denver put on a dominant display Sunday night against the 49ers. Defensively, the Broncos didn’t force any turnovers but they did allow just 310 total yards to an offense that is capable of exploding on occasion. They also held the 49ers to just 3-of-13 on third down conversions. Denver is allowing just 74.3 rushing yards per game (3rd in NFL), so they will make running the ball extremely tough on Branden Oliver. QB Peyton Manning (1,848 pass yards, 19 TD, 3 INT) lit up the 49ers with 318 yards, four touchdowns and zero interceptions in the game. It seems as though it doesn’t matter what defense he’s playing at this point, as Manning is capable of throwing on anybody, so the Chargers will have to drop their linebackers into coverage more than they’d like. That means RB Ronnie Hillman (240 rush yards, 2 TD) will have plenty of room to run. He had 74 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries against the 49ers. Hillman also caught four passes for 29 yards while proving not to be a liability in the pass-blocking department. WR Demaryius Thomas (39 rec, 662 yards, 6 TD) continues to be Peyton Manning’s go-to-guy this season. He caught eight passes for 171 yards and two touchdowns in the win over San Francisco. The Chargers will have a lot of trouble stopping somebody with his combination of size and speed.