Dallas Cowboys vs. Los Angeles Chargers Prediction & Pick
Cowboys vs. Chargers Odds
| Cowboys Odds | -1.5 |
| Chargers Odds | +1.5 |
| Over/Under | 50.5 |
| Date | Mon, Oct. 16 |
| Time | 8:15 p.m. |
| TV | ESPN |
This week’s edition of Monday Night Football will feature Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys against Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers. Dallas enters play fresh off of a devastating 42-10 to the San Francisco 49ers in Week 5. Los Angeles has won back to back contests after starting the year 0-2.
Ahead of kickoff in this matchup, oddsmakers have priced the Cowboys as 1.5-point favorites on the spread. The total for this contest is set at over/under 50.5 points.
Let’s take a deeper look at the matchup to see where NFL bettors can find value at sportsbooks in this contest.
Dallas Cowboys
Dak Prescott, Cowboys looking for bounce back performance
Simply, the Cowboys were embarrassed on Sunday Night Football in Week 5 against the San Francisco 49ers. The offense scored only 10 points and had less than 200 yards of total offense. Dak Prescott played one of his worst games as a professional and Tony Pollard added only 29 rushing yards on the ground.
Fortunately for Dallas, they get a favorable matchup in Week 6 as they look to regain their form. The Chargers rank 27th in defensive EPA/play this season and 29th in success through four games played. Prescott and company should find life easier tonight than they did eight days ago in San Francisco.
Defense missing Diggs
During the first two weeks of the campaign, Dallas ranked 1st in the NFL in defensive EPA/play and second in success rate. Since cornerback Trevon Diggs last played in Week 2, the Cowboys defense ranks 25th in EPA/play and 29th in success rate.
Though those statistics are skewed somewhat by last week’s dreadful effort against the 49ers, the numbers are also skewed by the fact that they played the New England Patriots the previous week – holding their anemic offense to only three points.
The Cowboys’ defense is no longer elite, and bettors are likely to be more convinced of that than ever after the conclusion of Monday Night Football.
Los Angeles Chargers
Revenge game for Kellen Moore
This past March, Dallas head coach Mike McCarthy, intentionally or unintentionally implied that Kellen Moore was more focused on his offense putting up points than the Cowboys winning games when Moore was the offensive coordinator in Dallas. Though Moore was polite and respectful with his comments to the media this week, there is little doubt in anyone’s mind that tonight is a personal matchup for him – on top of the fact that the Chargers are looking to get over the .500 mark.
Running back Austin Ekeler will return to the field on Monday and has expressed publicly that there is a little bit of extra motivation from the player for tonight’s contest. Coming off of a bye week, this offense should be ready to go for this primetime matchup.
Joey Bosa listed as questionable
Joey Bosa was listed as questionable on the final injury report of the week, but he is expected to play against the Cowboys, according to Tom Pelissero. Bosa has not played particularly well so far this year, ranking 78th out of 110 players at his position in defense grade, per PFF. However, he has finished in the top-nine in that metric five times since entering the league in 2016 – proving that there is high-end potential in him each time he steps on the field.
Overall, the Chargers have been most vulnerable through the air this season, ranking 30th in passing yards allowed per play. They will need to do a better job of getting pressure on the quarterback if they hope to improve upon those numbers this evening.
Cowboys vs. Chargers – Picks & Predictions
In Week 5, only four teams generated a lower defensive pressure rate than the Cowboys. It was the second time in three weeks that Dallas found themselves completely incapable of getting after the opposing quarterback. Other than a standout performance against an extremely weak New England offense, Dallas’ defense has been very beatable since losing Trevon Diggs. Factor in that this is a revenge game for Kellen Moore, and it is likely that Dallas’ defense struggles once again. Los Angeles’ offense should be able to score points at will in this one – consider their default and alt-team total on Monday Night Football.
PICK: Chargers Team Total – Over 24.5 Points (-110, Fanatics Sportsbook)