The Chargers' list is longer and does more damage up front. Right tackle Joe Alt (neck) didn't play the second half in Seattle, Rashawn Slater (ankle) was questionable to return, and guard Trevor Penning left in the 4th quarter with a head injury, while Kayode Awosika (leg) was already inactive. If even 2 of those tackles sit, Herbert spends Sunday behind a patched line against a Denver front that just got 1.0 sack and a pick-six from Talanoa Hufanga against the Rams. Ladd McConkey (foot) didn't return either, and All-Pro safety Derwin James Jr. (hamstring) was deactivated before the Seattle game.
Look at the Chargers' scores and it's a slow bleed more than a collapse. They lost 26-14 to Arizona and 26-14 to Las Vegas at home, then 24-16 at Buffalo and 30-23 at Seattle. None were blowouts, and they haven't scored more than 23 in any of them. Turnovers keep killing them: Genesis Smith picked off 2 passes against Buffalo and they still lost by 8. The defense has kept them in games, and the offense hasn't scored enough to win any of them.
Denver's 2-2 doesn't settle much either. The Broncos got blown out 31-10 at Kansas City, ground out a 20-13 win over Jacksonville, outlasted the Rams and then went quiet in San Francisco. The run game is still mostly J.K. Dobbins, who had 17 carries for 49 yards against the Rams, with RJ Harvey catching passes out of the backfield, and Jonah Coleman on IR. Kickoff is 1:05 PM PT at SoFi. If Surtain plays, the Broncos have the better team and should be favored. If he doesn't, Herbert gets the healthiest matchup he's seen all month, assuming he gets enough time to use it.