Monday Night Football: Broncos vs Chargers

Phillip Rivers will look to beat the Broncos

Despite being just 4-5 this season the San Diego Chargers remain a force to be reckoned with, especially considering how strong their defence is – just look at how they kept the New England Patriots in check.

With the Chargers taking on the Denver Broncos tonight it gives San Diego a chance to get back to a .500 record. The Broncos have struggled on the road this year going 1-3 and are struggling in general at 3-6. One bright spot for them has been Kyle Orton who is second in the league in passing yards.

Orton - 217-350, 2806 yards, 16 touchdowns - will have his work cut out though, against a team that has only given up 185 passing yards per game. But the Chargers have yet to beat a division rival this season giving Denver a chance tonight.

The 28-year-old delivered a devastating first quarter blitz against the Kansas City Chiefs last time out, where he threw three touchdowns, including a 40-yarder to Jabar Gaffney.

Philip Rivers, too, put in a great performance of his own for the Chargers last week throwing four touchdown passes to beat the Houston Texans in Texas. That was their first away win of the season and if they keep the momentum going Denver might be helpless to stop them.

"You have a Denver team that I would imagine feels like we did a week or two ago: 'Hey, we get on a little bit of a roll, we're right in there. We're a win away from first place and a loss away from last place. Everybody's in it and there's still a long way to go,” Rivers said.

Both Rivers and Orton are on pace to test Dan Marino's single-season record of 5,084 passing yards set in 1984.

With both teams sporting less than impressive records a loss tonight could spell an end to either teams play-off hopes, something Chargers coach Norv Turner is all too aware of.

"I really think we came to the conclusion that the best thing to do is go win a game at a time and not get caught up in the race."

Wide receivers Legedu Naanee and Malcom Floyd expect to both return from injuries for San Diego while the Broncos should have most of their regular starters available.