Can this Chargers team rewrite their usual playoff script?

[thelightningwill]

Tough road but definitely doable. Cinci is a tough
matchup but winnable. And my friend is a Bronco fan and he does NOT want to play the Chargers. We've had a lot of success in Denver over the years, and we just held them to 20 points. IMO, the Chargers dominated every aspect of that game. I can't think beyond that yet.

I wouldn't say we've had a lot of success in Denver over the years. We were good this year but other years that place has been a land of nightmares.

[Formula 21]

River has a great record at DEN. From memory, it might be 6-2.

[richpjr]

River has a great record at DEN. From memory, it might be 6-2.

We'll call that 6-2 with an asterisk. If not for the beloved Ed Hochuli, he'd be 7-1 in Denver.

[Boltx]

The Bengals kind of remind me of the Chargers from like the 2006-2009 era....loaded with talent and big names all up and down the roster, Dalton is kinda finding his way but still mistake-prone.

Hopefully the Bengals also play as undisciplined and sloppy as our teams did back then.

[Beerman]

They're going to be an interesting matchup for many of the AFC teams. They'll have to become the first team to beat the Bengals in Cincinnati this season, but they match up reasonably well against a tough Cincinnati defense; the relative weakness in Cincinnati's stout pass defense is covering backs and tight ends, and the Chargers go four-deep with options there in Danny Woodhead, Ryan Mathews, Antonio Gates, and freak athlete Ladarius Green. If they can beat the Bengals, they're guaranteed a trip to Denver for a rematch against the Broncos, where they won against all odds a month ago. Then, if they pull off that upset for a second time, the Chargers would likely be looking at another possible shootout against the Patriots or Colts or a third matchup with the Chiefs, whom they've now beaten twice in 2013. It's not simple enough to just pencil them in for wins because they've beaten teams in the past, but it is worth noting that the Chargers are capable of getting past just about anybody in the playoffs if their regular-season performance means anything. And after going from 5-7 to the playoffs, well, you couldn't blame the Chargers for feeling like they can beat anybody right about now.

Probably the best quote I've seen so far from Grantland.