Thursday Night Football is in Los Angeles this week as the Chargers (4-3) play host to the Minnesota Vikings (3-3).
Justin Herbert and the Chargers opened the 2025 season with three straight wins including takedowns of AFC West rivals Denver and Kansas City. Life was good for Jim Harbaugh and his team. The balance of power in the division, if not also the conference appeared to be shifting.
Fast forward a month.
Injuries and tensions are mounting as LA has lost three of its last four with the lone win being a last-second victory over the Miami Dolphins. The Chargers are now tied with the Chiefs, a game behind the division-leading Broncos. The importance of Thursday’s result cannot be overstated for the Chargers.
The Vikings drafted J.J. McCarthy 10th overall in 2024 with the expectation he would assume the role of QB1 no later than this season. Well, the Vikings have played 24 games (regular season and playoffs) since that draft and McCarthy has been healthy for two of them. The former Michigan quarterback lost last season to a knee injury suffered during the preseason. This season he has been sidelined since Week 2 with a high ankle sprain. There are rumblings he may play in Los Angeles, but its doubtful he returns prior to Week 9 against Detroit. Carson Wentz will start again in McCarthy’s place if he is not ready. The veteran has gone 2-2 in place of McCarthy.
The Vikings have rotated wins and losses weekly this season. Having lost last week to the Eagles, no doubt they are hoping the pendulum swings favorably again this week no matter who is under center.
Fun Fact: Carson Wentz is 7-0 in his career on Thursday Night football.
Lets dive into the numbers and see if we can find an advantage or two.
NBC Sports has all the latest info and analysis you need, including how to tune in for kickoff, odds from DraftKings, player news and updates, and of course our predictions and best bets for the game from our staff of experts.
Game Details and How to watch the Vikings at Chargers live Sunday
- Date: Thursday, October 23, 2025
- Time: 8:15PM EST
- Site: SoFi Stadium
- City: Inglewood, CA
- Network/Streaming: Amazon Prime
Want to check out the other games on the NFL schedule this week? We’ve got you covered right here on NBC Sports with all the matchup, venue, game-time and TV/streaming info so you won’t miss any of the action!
Game odds for the Vikings at the Chargers
The latest odds as of Tuesday courtesy of DraftKings:
- Moneyline: Minnesota Vikings (+142), Los Angeles Chargers (-170)
- Spread: Chargers -3
- Total: 44.5 points
This game opened at Chargers -2.5 with the Game Total set at 43.
Be sure to check out DraftKings for all the latest game odds & player props for every matchup this week on the NFL schedule!
Quarterback Matchup for Minnesota at Los Angeles
- Vikings Starting QB: Carson Wentz
Last Game: 10/19 vs. Philadelphia - 26-42, 313yds, 0 TDs, 2 INTs, Sacked 2 times, 4 carries for 28yds rushing
Season: 4GP, 95-142, 1,072yds, 5 TDs, 4 INTs, Sacked 14 times, 11 carries for 57yds rushing - Chargers Starting QB: Justin Herbert
Last Game: 10/19 vs. Indianapolis - 37-55, 420yds, 3 TDs, 2 INTs, Sacked 3 times, 6 carries for 31yds rushing
Season: 7GP, 183-271, 1,913yds, 13 TDs, 6 INTs, Sacked 20 times, 30 carries for 186yds rushing
Vikings at Chargers team stats, betting trends
- Oronde Gadsden II led the Chargers last week with 7 catches for 164yds
- Ladd McConkey has been targeted at least 7 times in 5 of the Chargers’ 7 games this season and has caught at least 5 balls in 5 of 7 games this season
- Jordan Mason has rushed for an average of 55yds over the past three games
- Since returning to the active roster three games ago, Jordan Addison has tallied over 100 yards receiving twice
- These teams last met in Week 3 of the 2023 season with the Chargers winning at Minnesota, 28-24
- Justin Herbert threw for 405 yards (his career high at the time) with 3 passing TD and 0 INT in that win
Vikings Player Injuries
- QB J.J. McCarthy (ankle) is questionable for Thursday’s game
- QB Carson Wentz (shoulder) is questionable for Thursday’s game
- LB Andrew Van Ginkel (neck) is questionable for Thursday’s game
- RB Zavier Scott (wrist) is questionable for Thursday’s game
- RB Aaron Jones Sr. (hamstring) remains on IR and is questionable for Thursday’s game
- FB C.J. Ham (hand) is questionable for Thursday’s game
- RT Brian O’Neill (undisclosed) is questionable for Thursday’s game
Broncos Player Injuries
- OT Joe Alt (ankle) is questionable for Thursday’s game
- G Trey Pipkins III (knee) is questionable for Thursday’s game
- CB Elijah Molden (thumb) is questionable for Thursday’s game
- LB Troy Dye (thumb) is questionable for Thursday’s game
- DT Otito Ogbonnia (elbow) is questionable for Thursday’s game
- RB Hassan Haskins (hamstring) is questionable for Thursday’s game
- OT Austin Deculus (ankle) is questionable for Thursday’s game
Rotoworld Bet Best Bets
Please bet responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700.
Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the NFL calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, stadium information and weather forecasts.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Best bets our model is projecting for Thursday Night’s game between the Vikings and the Chargers:
- Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is staying away from a play on the Moneyline.
- Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Los Angeles Chargers -3.
- Total: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the UNDER on the Game Total of 44.5.
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