The Detroit Lions are on the brink of their first playoff berth in over a decade. To get there, they need a win over a potent San Diego team that has one of the league's best offenses, especially in the month of December. SB Nation's Pride of Detroit has published an extensive preview of the Chargers' offense in advance of Saturday's critical game at Ford Field:
Much like the Lions, the Chargers are very much reliant on their quarterback, Philip Rivers. Pretty much, how he goes, so does the Chargers offense. It should, then, come as no surprise that both Rivers and the Chargers were dipping and are peaking at the same times. Before their current three-game winning streak, the Chargers had dropped six straight games and were basically left for dead in the AFC West. Over that span, Rivers had a pretty mediocre passer rating of 75.0, while his team was only putting up 21.5 points per contest. On the flip side of things, Rivers has an astounding average quarterback rating of 132.2 during their current winning streak.
San Diego is also fighting for its playoff life, and the Chargers likely need this game more than the Lions. Detroit has a large cushion in terms of a two game lead with two to play, so they can still get in if enough teams lose behind them. San Diego still needs to win and get some help in the final weeks of the season to reach the playoffs. They trail by a game in the AFC West and a wild card berth is unlikely at this point.