Dueling Columnists: Shaughnessy Picks Chargers, Ryan Likes Pats

The Boston Globe this morning features two sports columnists taking opposite sides in predicting the outcome of today's Chargers-Patriots game. Dan Shaughnessy says the Chargers are going to win, while Bob Ryan takes the home town team.

Putting aside who's actually going to be right, Shaughnessy makes the vastly superior argument:

San Diego scored 249 points in eight home games and outscored opponents, 492-303, overall. The Chargers have the best red zone offense in football and scored 176 fourth-quarter points.

They have nine Pro Bowlers, including the NFL's best player, MVP LaDainian Tomlinson. LT scored a league-record 31 touchdowns this year and has averaged 141.7 yards in three career games against Belichick's Patriots. That's 5.6 yards per carry, people. Belichick is a defensive master, but if the Patriots bunch their front seven to stone Tomlinson, that leaves all-world tight end Antonio Gates to kill New England over the middle.

When you get down to it, Shaughnessy's argument is that the Chargers will win because they're a better team. Ryan's argument is:

What happened last week in Foxborough should not be taken for granted. It should have sent a message to the rest of the NFL that the Patriots were going to be a formidable obstacle for anyone in the playoffs. It was a far more meaningful triumph than the wild-card victory over the Jaguars last year because this Jets team is far superior to that Jacksonville team.

Actually, that Jacksonville team was better than this Jets team, and even if that weren't the case, it's irrelevant. This San Diego team is much, much better than this Jets team, and that's who the Patriots are dealing with. How exactly does it "send a message" to beat an inferior team? Ryan's case seems to be that the Patriots have some magical switch they turn on in the playoffs to transform themselves from mere mortals into supermen. As we saw last year, that isn't the case.