Tua-Herbert is a rare QB matchup between 2 high draft picks
LOS ANGELES CHARGERS (2-6) at MIAMI (5-3)
Sunday, 4:05 p.m. EST, CBS
OPENING LINE - Dolphins by 2
RECORD VS. SPREAD - Chargers 5-3; Dolphins 6-2
SERIES RECORD - Dolphins lead 18-16
LAST MEETING - Chargers won at Dolphins 30-10 on Sept. 29, 2019
LAST WEEK - Chargers lost to Raiders 31-26; Dolphins won at Cardinals 34-31
AP PRO32 RANKING - Chargers No. 24, Dolphins No. 12
CHARGERS OFFENSE - OVERALL (7), RUSH (8), PASS (9).
CHARGERS DEFENSE - OVERALL (11), RUSH (12), PASS (10).
DOLPHINS OFFENSE - OVERALL (30), RUSH (29), PASS (23).
DOLPHINS DEFENSE - OVERALL (17), RUSH (24), PASS (17).
STREAKS, STATS AND NOTES — The matchup between the Chargers’ Justin Herbert and the Dolphins’ Tua Tagovailoa is just the seventh in the NFL since 1967 involving two rookie starting QBs who were taken in the top six picks of the draft. ... Former Dolphins RB Kalen Ballage gained 69 yards and scored a touchdown in his first action with the Chargers last week. … Chargers DE Melvin Ingram has 4 1/2 sacks in four games against Miami. …. The Chargers have their worst midseason record since 2015. Their losses have been by a combined 24 points. ... In the past two years the Chargers are 3-15 in games decided by touchdown or less. ... Los Angeles' Herbert has thrown for 10 touchdowns and only three interceptions in three road starts. Herbert has thrown multiple touchdown passes and for over 250 yards in his past five games. …. The Chargers' Joshua Kelley ranks sixth among rookie running backs with 433 scrimmage yards. …. WR Keenan Allen has at least nine receptions in each of his past three games. … WR Mike Williams has three touchdown catches in his past four games. … DE Joey Bosa remains in the concussion protocol and will miss his second game in a row. ... Chargers DT Jerry Tillery has had a sack in two consecutive games. ... The Dolphins’ record matches their best at the halfway point since 2001. They’re on a four-game winning streak, their longest since 2016. ... The Dolphins’ point differential of plus-61 ranks fifth in the NFL. At midseason in 2019 they were minus-153. ... For the first time since 1977, the Dolphins have scored at least 21 points in the first half of four consecutive games. ... Miami has now scored at least 21 points in seven consecutive games, the team’s longest such streak since 2001-02. ... Miami’s first-half point differential of plus-64 for the season is the NFL’s best. ... Tua Tagovailoa is 2-0 as a starter, has a passer rating of 103.8 and has yet to throw an interception. ... In each of the past two games, DE Emmanual Ogbah has had a strip sack that a teammate returned for a touchdown. Ogbah is tied for fourth in the NFL with seven sacks, more than any Miami player had in all of 2018 or 2019. ... K Jason Sanders has made 20 consecutive field goals, breaking the team record of 19 set by Olindo Mare in 1999. Last week he became the first Miami player to make two kicks of at least 50 yards in the same game. ... The Dolphins have a takeaway in 15 consecutive games, which is the second-longest active streak in the NFL behind Baltimore’s 21 games. ... Four Dolphins assistant coaches will miss the game because of COVID-19 protocols. ... The Dolphins ranked last in the NFL in yards per carry in 2019, and they’re last again at 3.6. ... Miami's next four opponents — the Chargers, Broncos, Jets and Bengals -- are a combined 7-25-1. ... Fantasy tip: The Dolphins struggle to run the ball and are now thin at receiver, which could mean more targets for the speedy WR Jakeem Grant.
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