Is it Week 5 already? Who would have thought that the AFC West would have a 3-1 team in the San Diego Chargers sitting on top? I did, but so did all of Bolt Nation (but that is how they do it every year).

The New Orleans Saints (0-4) are about to get a good dose of reality when the Chargers (3-1) come to the Superdome. If you think it is going to be just another game, you might want to think again. On paper, San Diego(ranked 9^th in the league so far) is the team to beat but they are going to the Superdome which is no easy place to play. Every team that walks onto that field needs to know that Drew Brees is still one player they shouldn’t sleep on. Even though the Saints are ranked 32^nd in the league, they really need a win (even if it is for consolation. On a side note, Brees is just one TD away from a 50 year old record that is surely going to get snapped. Last week, he tied Johnny Unitas’ 47 straight TD record. That may be the only good thing to come out of the game for the Saints.

However, if you look at the offensive numbers you can see thatNew Orleansactually stand out better thanSan Diegoin every category except time of possession and rushing. We all know Ryan Matthews is struggling a bit but that is to be expected while he is recovering. Plus, you cannot count out the fact thatBattleis still trying to find his place. The Saints pile on over 400 YPG worth of offense but are still 0-4 so what gives? Good question! It’s the defense and it stinks.

New Orleans’ defense is worse than rotting flesh than has been left outside in the baking sun for a few weeks while a few birds poke and prod on it (let’s not forget the maggots and flies, etc). They are dead last in the league for yards allowed in rushing and passing. San Diegohas a 17^th ranked defense for passing and a stellar 5^th ranked on the run. Philip Rivers has to be ecstatic to see these kinds of stats for the Saints, he has to! He loves to pass as we all know and expect him to air it out early. In fact,New Orleans hasn’t seen a defense likeSan Diego’s all year, so they will have their hands full.

Expect the Chargers to be 4-1 at the end of Week 5.

Can San Diego go 3-0? If they want to do so, they will have to go through the Atlanta Falcons first.

For football fans around the country, many might say “big deal” but we all know better on a few fronts. First of all, the Falcons are playing lights out offensively as QB Matt Ryan is the NFL’s league leader in passing rating (117.6) and he has options at every single position. In fact, he is just 5% away from completing ¾ of all of his passes. Combine that with the fact he has already thrown 5 TD’s and a little over 500 yards already, and you may already be looking at the making of the league’s MVP.

The Chargers have more to worry about because they may lose their seventh in a row to Atlanta and lose their unbeaten record. The two teams are a couple of six that are still undefeated. By the end of the day, the league will be down at least one. The Falcons had a huge Week 1 and they look to have another huge Week in San Diego with WR Roddy White leading all receivers with 189 yards. However, their running game is non-existent. Atlanta is only managing 3.0 YPC and that will not cut it against San Diego.

Norv Turner is trying to lead the Chargers to their first 3-0 start in 10 years. Actually, since Turner has taken over, the team has never been 2-0. QB Philip Rivers has had some guys help him get to the spot he is in right now and it isn’t the starters. In fact, they are backups Dante Rosario, Jackie Battle and Le’Ron McClain. Rosario went off against the Titans last week catching three TD’s and Jackie Battle has helped carry the load since RB Ryan Mathews has been out. There is good news for Chargers fans though, Mathews is expected to be in the lineup this weekend against the Falcons.

There is good news for San Diego though- 60 points scored and only 24 allowed while committing only a single turnover. That is exactly the kind of play they will need if they want to win this one. I usually don’t make predictions but I am calling this one. Chargers win.

As previously reported, RB Ryan Mathews did not play for San Diego. If Philip Rivers and Dante Rosario keep hooking up like they did Sunday afternoon, the Chargers might not need the running back at all this year.

The Chargers knew what Rosario could do well before Sunday’s game against the Tennessee Titans because they saw it up close in a game several years ago when he played for the Carolina Panthers. With Antonio Gates out, Rosario only caught four receptions for a measly 48 yards. However, he made the most of those four receptions and those 48 yards, ensuring they were in the red zone, scoring three times- a career high.

TE Antonio Gates sat out because of a rib injury that was sustained in the win at Oakland but the TE is happy with the win and should be back in the lineup for Week 3.

Rosario wasn’t the only one to do the scoring though. Ryan Mathews’ back-up had quite the game as well, connecting on two 1-yard TD runs late in the game. RB Jackie Battle saw plenty of action but that may change once Mathews gets back in the lineup. Rivers finished 24-32 for 284 yards and 3 TD, 1 INT.

On the defensive side of the ball, San Diego looked pretty good. Even though they forced only one turnover, a lone interception, they allowed the Titans to hang onto the ball less than 17 minutes the entire game. In fact, Tennessee could only muster up 212 total yards of offense.

On a somber note, right before the game the organization retired Junior Seau’s jersey and there wasn’t a dry face in the house. Seau, who lead the Chargers team for 13 wonderful seasons, gave the team and the NFL everything he had. A player, who had the biggest heart and the warmest smile, will forever be remembered in Chargers history. Seau didn’t play for glory or statistics. He didn’t play for money. He played because he loved the game. Junior suited up every Sunday because he wanted to give fans what they paid for. #55 is a Hall of Fame player not because he had over 1,500 tackles; not because he had a decent fumble stat or interception stat; it’s because he woke up every day with the sole purpose of making people smile.

San Diego’s winning streak versus Tennessee dates back to when the Titans were the Oilers- 1993. The Chargers are enjoying a 2-0 start for the first time since 2006 but they are not going to rest now. They can’t rest now. Their next game is against the Falcons at Qualcomm.

Sources close to the San Diego organization say that RB Ryan Mathews will likely be out against the Titans in Sunday’s matchup.

As many of you already know, Mathews suffered a broken collarbone in the preseason opener in early August. The start running back has seen limited practice time and he is nowhere near ready to suit up and be a threat to opposing teams.

Ronnie Brown and Curtis Brinkley were doing most of the work last week when San Diego picked up the win against an Oakland team that looked ragged. The only issue was that the pair had 15 carries but only managed 17 yards. Neither one really did anything to outshine the other so don’t expect a great showing on Sunday. If you are a fantasy owner, I would play someone else but that is in my professional opinion.

There is good news though. These same sources stated that Mathews should be ready to go for the Week 3 matchup against Atlanta. Head Coach Norv Turner couldn’t be more ecstatic to hear that news because he will need all the help he can get as the Atlanta Falcons seem to be on an offensive onslaught.

Anyone who knows the Chargers organization will tell you that the team never really makes a strong start. In fact, San Diego is a team that plays the same on the road as they do at home. From week to week, you never know what you are going to get.

The team posted a 5-3 record at Qualcomm in 2011 and when the Tennessee Titans come to town on Sunday, they will have a four game winning streak against the Titans on their side. The eye-popping statistic is that San Diego has not lost to Tennessee since the club was the Houston Oilers in 1992.

One thing that could hurt the Chargers’ running game is Ryan Mathews’ possibly sitting out the game due to him still recovering from a broken collarbone suffered in the preseason. The team rushed 20 times for a measly 32 yards but they still managed to overcome a mean Oakland team that wouldn’t give up, led by Darren McFadden. Even though Rivers had to settle for quick, short routes, he completed 24 of his 33 passes for 231 yards and a score. With QB Philip Rivers playing like that, they may not need Mathews’.

With Rivers not committing any turnovers and connecting on a high percentage of his passes, the four-time Pro Bowler is already looking great- which is more than we can say for last year when he threw 20 interceptions and had 25 total turnovers. When he protects the ball and don’t commit a turnover, San Diego wins. In fact they are 22-3 in his career as a starter in San Diego. If the offensive line protects Rivers and allows less than two sacks, the QB is 36-11.

No matter what Rivers and the OL do to improve, they need a running game. Coach Norv Turner states that Mathews has not been cleared to start yet, or even play a single down. The medical staff is still taking the necessary steps to ensure he is healthy enough to practice. Mathews, who played in 14 games in 2011, ran for 1,091 yards.

The running game was so abysmal for San Diego that only one team was worse in the rushing category in Week 1- you guessed it- Tennessee. They managed only 20 yards against the Patriots at home. Chris Johnson, who is thought to be one of the best backs in the league had only 11 carries the whole night and managed four yards. The Titans do not want Johnson to have another start like he did last year, when he started the year with 366 yards rushing in the first eight games.

San Diego, though, looks to stop Johnson dead in his tracks as they did the Raiders running game. Last week versus Oakland, they held the team to just 45 yards.

It looks like the Chargers can finally get off to a good start and might finish strong as well. Chargers’ fans need to keep their bolts crossed because it is way too early in the season to think about the Super Bowl.

Prediction: Chargers all over this one 35-17