prediction

It’s a testament to the coaching of Jim Harbaugh that the Chargers have been decidedly un-Charger-like this season, continuing to win games despite a slew of pivotal injuries. They’re coming off back-to-back victories over the two teams in last season’s Super Bowl, Philadelphia and Kansas City.

Their challenge Sunday is beating the Cowboys, who went 3-1 in November but began this month with consecutive losses.

The Cowboys lead the league in offense, rolling up nearly 400 yards per game, but they’re 29th in total defense and last against the pass. Facing Justin Herbert is not a favorable matchup for them.

Dallas was eliminated from postseason contention with a Week 15 loss to Minnesota.

The Chargers can clinch a playoff berth with a win and a loss or tie by Indianapolis (versus San Francisco) or Houston (vs. Las Vegas).

How the Chargers can win: If Herbert has time, he should be able to dissect a suspect Cowboys secondary and relies heavily on zone coverage. That has led to a bunch of explosive plays. The Cowboys are vulnerable to the run, as well, and a balanced attack by the Chargers will take them a long way. Get another strong performance from the defense.

How the Cowboys can win: Be aggressive and play to win, not to protect leads. That means outscoring the Chargers, not settling for field goals because Brandon Aubrey is such a weapon. It would help the Cowboys to take some risks and go for it on fourth down more frequently. They can put points on the board, but more often they move the ball well between the 20s. Even a small improvement on defense would help.

Once again, Bill Plaschke has literally jinxed another Southern California sports team with his proclamation questions regarding the Rams:

Who’s going to beat them?

Who’s going to stop the unstoppable offense?

Who’s going to score on the persistent defense?

Who’s going to outwit the coaching genius?

I have the answers, and it’s not just Seattle. It’s their special teams, their defensive backs and it’s coach Sean McVay’s play-calling. Well, maybe the referees … but that’s for another day.

Thanks again for the poison-pen article, Bill.

Gary Grayson
Ventura

Just four days after Bill Plaschke promised that the Rams would win the Super Bowl, the team blew a big lead and lost in a stinker to the Seahawks. Like my mother told me when I was a kid: Be honest, respect others, and bet against Plaschke — you’ll win every time!

Jack Wolf
Westwood

Can we quit the Rams praise now? They can’t tackle anyone that gets past the line of scrimmage. Coach Sean McKay and defensive coordinator Chris Shula went into a shell as the Rams lost the game to the Seahawks and any chance of a long playoff run.

Russell Hosaka
Torrance

How many more times do we need to see Emmanuel Forbes chasing a receiver because of a blown coverage or missing an assignment and giving up a big play. The secondary is the weak link in the Rams defense and he’s absolutely a broken link. Chris Shula, please put someone else back there. The mascot Rampage would be a better choice than Forbes.

Doug Vikser
Manhattan Beach

Bill Plaschke writes of the Rams: “Who’s going to score on the persistent defense?” Maybe the Lions with 34 points?

William P. Bekkala
West Hollywood

Bill Plaschke’s Rams encomium is puzzling. During the course of the game I watched, Detroit moved through the Rams defense like Sherman through Georgia. This was, at best, park football. The first team that exploits the Rams defense as the Lions did and consistently moves the ball on offense will defeat the Rams.

Skip Nevell
Eugene, Ore.

Just when the Rams thought that they solved their kicking situation, they lost another game because of a missed field goal. After the game, they must have been kicking themselves.

Jeff Hershow
Woodland Hills

It looks like the Bills are going to win the Super Bowl, because Plaschke wrote, “The Bills? Not ever.”

Vaughn Hardenberg
Westwood

Sweeping the Las Vegas Raiders is one thing, but can the Chargers do the same against the mighty Kansas City Chiefs?

With the way Patrick Mahomes & Co. have played lately — losing four of five and in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time with Mahomes — that’s entirely possible.

The Chargers need to win at least one of their final four games to get to double digits and put themselves in position to make the playoffs, and it’s a brutal stretch — at Kansas City and Dallas, home against Houston, and a finale at Denver. They could check that box Sunday, having won five of their last six games.

How the Chargers can win: The Chargers need to ratchet up the pressure on Mahomes, particularly off the edges, and test an offensive line that has been in a steady rotation and is suspect at the tackle spots. Take advantage of the inconsistency at receiver and the propensity for drops. The secondary led the way in the win over Philadelphia. Win on early downs to get into third-and-manageable and don’t fall behind in what can be one of the loudest stadiums in the league. Keep Chris Jones and the rest off of Justin Herbert, who still is recovering from surgery on his left hand. Continue to pound the ball with Omarion Hampton and Kimani Vidal.

How the Chiefs can win: The Chiefs need to win out, and to do that they must get out of their own way. Too many times they have fallen victim to mistakes — drops, penalties, missed assignments, defensive lapses. It’s like a bizarro version of the team that went 11-0 in one-score games last season. As great as he is, Mahomes can’t get happy feet the way he has too often. Kansas City needs to do a better job of giving him a clean pocket. The Chiefs need to tighten up on defense late — that has been a problem — and limit turnovers. They’re in a loud stadium and the cold weather plays to their advantage.