Week 3: Bills vs. Chargers
at
Sunday, Sept. 21st
1:00pm ET
The Bills keep trying to ride the electric wave of emotion and momentum from a 2-0 start and the future of the franchise secured. The fact that they are at the Ralph again should keep things going well but the high flying Chargers come to town fresh off a victory over the world champs so they should be confident as well.

FACTS AND FIGURES

Matchup: Buffalo (2-0) vs. San Diego (1-1)
Place: Ralph Wilson Stadium
TV/Radio: Network: CBS; DirecTV: 705; Sirius: 84
Announcers: Andrew Catalon, Steve Tasker, and Steve Beuerlein
Spread: Bills by 2½
Series: Chargers lead 21-12-2 (Bills 2-0 in playoffs)
Streak: Chargers Won 1
Last Meeting: Chargers 37-10 in San Diego (2011)
Chargers Offense: Rush (27th); Pass (8th); overall (19th)
Chargers Defense: Rush (15th); Pass (19th); overall (18th)
Bills Offense: Rush (6th); Pass (26th); overall (17th)
Bills Defense: Rush (5th); Pass (27th); overall (21st)


INJURY UPDATE

The Bills may be without Keith Rivers again who suffered a groin injury in the opener and was sidelined against the Dolphins. He is practicing on a limited basis and is day to day. Stefan Charles suffered a hip injury and Randell Johnson hurt his knee in the win over the Dolphins. Johnson may sit while Charles is day to day. Sammy Watkins will continue to play through a painful rib injury that will cause him to miss a few plays here and there.

The Chargers will be without starting RB Ryan Matthews who sprained his MCL in last week's win over Seattle. Antonio Gates is battling a hamstring injury while Brandon Flowers has a groin injury. Both players have missed practice time this week along with LB Jerry Attaochu who has a hamstring injury of his own.

Check out our Bills Daily Injury Page throughout the week for the latest updates on the injured players.

KEY MATCHUPS

RB C.J. Spiller vs. LB Manti Te'o:
Spiller needs to make some big plays to allow the Bills offense to keep pace in this game. Te'o is talented and is in the middle of the Chargers defense trying to make plays in the running game.

WR Sammy Watkins vs. CB Brandon Flowers:
Watkins had a coming out party at the Ralph last week and would love a repeat performance against the solid veteran Flowers. After his 8 catch, 117 yard performance last week he is likely to see a lot of double teams as the Chargers will give Flowers plenty of help with the 4th overall pick in the draft.

DE Mario Williams vs. RT D.J. Fluker:
Williams goes up against another young right tackle. Fluker is a rising star in his second year in the league.

LB Preston Brown vs. TE Antonio Gates:
Brown has played every snap in the first two games and will likely draw the resurgent Gates in pass coverage. The ageless Gates leads the Chargers in catches, yards, and touchdowns.

KEYS TO THE GAME

1. Pressure Rivers: The Chargers will be one dimensional with their starting tailback out. Keeping the high flying passing game at bay will be difficult if they don't get constant pressure on Philip Rivers. The Chargers OL is solid as they have only given up one sack in their first two games.
2. Red Zone Efficiency: EJ Manuel stated the obvious on Wednesday when he said field goals won't be good enough this week. San Diego can score points in a hurry so it will be important for the Bills to get their red zone woes behind them this week and get touchdowns instead of field goals.
3. Protect The Football: The Bills have done a good job of holding onto the football with just one turnover in two games. Turnovers come in bunches but this would be the wrong week for the Bills to start being in a giving mood. They can't give the Chargers any short fields to make it easier for the high potent offense to put points on the board.

BILLS DAILY PREDICTION

This is a good test for to see how far the Bills have developed so far this year. If this game was in San Diego it would be very tough to win but we all know how hard it is for a West Coast team to come east. The Ralph once again is one of the hardest places for an opposing team to play and the fans will be fired up for a second straight week. That should be enough to put the Bills over the top:
Bills 31, Chargers 27

Season Prediction Record: (1-1)
Season Record Against The Spread: (1-1)

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