Will the 49ers Short Circuit the Chargers, or Get Shocked?
The Chargers have a ridiculous number of injured players.
Star cornerback JC Jackson has a torn meniscus. Star edge rusher Joey Bosa has a groin tear. Star left tackle Rashawn Slater has torn bicep. Third string wide receiver Donald Parham Jr. has a pulled hamstring. Running back Joshua Kelly has an undisclosed knee injury, as does wide receiver Jalen Guyton. Their best run stuffer, defensive tackle Austin Johnson, has a significant knee injury.
None of those players will play this Sunday at Levi's and most won't suit up again this season.
As if losing their left tackle wasn't bad enough, the Chargers right tackle Trey Pipkins III did not practice on Wednesday, due to an aggravation of a prior MCL injury. Star wide receiver Keenan Allen has a pulled hamstring that has had a setback. Star wide receiver Mike Williams has a high ankle sprain. Defensive tackle Jerry Tillery has a personal issue. Cornerback Chris Rumph II has an MCL. Linebacker Amen Ogbongbemiga has groin pull. All are questionable to play Sunday.
Here is the Chargers injury report from Wednesday:
Even their kicker Dustin Hopkins has an injured hamstring!
You might think that this would be an easy win for the 49ers, who appear to be getting lots of key players back this week.
But here are some reasons why the Chargers might shock the 49ers:
No NFL team is ever easy to beat, not even ones that are heavily injured.
Justin Herbert is one of the most talented quarterbacks in the NFL, who is able to elevate his weapons.
Austin Ekeler is a scoring machine, who is on pace for over 1600 scrimmage yards, as well as over 21 touchdowns. He is technically a running back, but really he's an offensive weapon similar to Deebo Samuel, or Christian McCaffrey.
The Chargers interior offensive line is very good and defensive tackles Arik Armstead and Javon Kinlaw won't play Sunday. Linebackers Azeez Al-Shaair and Dre Greenlaw have both practiced, but neither is certain to play.
The Chargers run defense is weak, but they still have star edge Khalil Mack and super star safety Derwin James, who play almost any position, on defense, other than defensive tackle.
The 49ers are also likely to be rusty, after having their bye week last week.
We saw three weeks ago, against the Chiefs, that players returning from being injured often don't perform at or even close to their peaks.
As of now, I am picking the 49ers to short-circuit the Chargers, but that could change, if most of their questionable players can play. As always, I will reply to this article with my official prediction about an hour prior to kickoff, once we know for certain who will play and who won't.
