Chargers vs. Ravens NFL Week 6 Picks and Predictions

The game of the week takes place in Baltimore this week as the Chargers travel over to take on the 4-1 Ravens off the back of an OT win on Monday night against the Colts.

The spread line in this one has the Ravens at a field goal favorite while the total looks low at around 51 points in what I expect to be a high-scoring game. Read on to take a look at the NFL odds and start making your NFL picks. 

Los Angeles Chargers vs. Baltimore Ravens

Sunday, October 17, 2021 - 01:00 PM EDT at M and T Bank Stadium

Which QB Has Impressed the Most?

Two of the main favorites for the regular season MVP take to the field here with Justin Herbert and Lamar Jackson both looking brilliant in the week just gone. Herbert led his team in out-scoring the Browns in a crazy 47-42 win against them while Lamar Jackson threw for over 400 yards in this overtime win against the Colts.

https://youtu.be/XDLUfzpg9XY

Both are priced at +700 at the best online bookmakers but have a look around for the best price if you’re looking to back it. So far Herbert has 13 TDs and 1,576 yards while Lamar Jackson who apparently can’t throw the ball has racked up 8 passing TDs and 1,519 yards in the air as well as 341 and 2 rushing scores.

I would say Herbert looks the better at this point of the season, the improvement of his team and the way he’s led them to wins just seems more impressive, but that’s not taking away from Lamar who is on target to throw for 2,000 more yards than he did in the year he won the MVP award.

https://twitter.com/chargers/status/1448348844140339201?s=20

Was the Change of Coaching the Key for the Chargers?

It certainly looks like it at the moment, Brandon Staley took over a good roster and with good coaching has shown just what it can achieve, their only loss coming in a game they could have easily won against the Cowboys.

The Chargers lost more one-score games than any other team in the league under Anthony Lynn, while Staley has turned that around and thanks mainly to the aggression and faith in his offense has been winning those games. Going for it on fourth down has been key especially in the win against the Browns this weekend where they completed 3 of 3 including one deep in their own half of the field.

The use of Mike Williams has improved their offense, it seems obvious that targeting the big man would be advantageous but it just hasn’t really happened until this year, he and Keenan Allen have been a brilliant pairing this year and Austin Ekeler has carried on where he left off last season.

https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1442970276837216262?s=20

Can Lamar Jackson Keep His Team Going?

The off-season was tough for the Ravens, they lost JK Dobbins and then Gus Edwards at running back meaning they had to rush to get in free agents. Latavius Murray, Devonta Freeman, and Le’veon Bell would have been a brilliant backfield just 5 years ago, but now it’s not quite so good. Murray has done well as the goal-line back though.

This team though is all about Lamar Jackson, he’s finally been able to make Marquise Brown the WR1 that they thought they were getting when they drafted him sitting 8th in yards so far and 2nd in TDs scored with 5 on the season after his double on Monday. It would have been more had he not dropped everything against the Lions in week 3.

Lamar Jackson #8 of the Baltimore Ravens. Patrick Smith/Getty Images/AFP

Who Wins This One Then?

It’s obviously a tough game to call. Both have been better than I thought so far, both have beaten the Superbowl runner-up Chiefs. But I think the key here is the Ravens run game against a Chargers defense which ranks 31st against the run according to DVOA. They allowed 230 yards on the ground to the Browns last week and a total of 531 yards against them.

https://twitter.com/Ravens/status/1447945748096638988?s=20

However, the Chargers have shown that they can put up points on anyone and the Ravens are a bottom-half defense who gave up 25 to an average Colts team this week past.

For my NFL pick, I have to take the overs in this one, I think it could be another 80+ point game with the talent on show and hopefully, one for us all to enjoy.

NFL Pick: Over 52 (-108)

*The pick reflects the line at the moment the writer made the play, the odds at the beginning of this article show the live line movement. Since the lines might vary, don’t forget to refer back to our live odds.