Two teams currently holding AFC wild-card spots meet on Monday Night Football as the Ravens (7-4) visit the Chargers (7-3) in the third-ever Harbaugh Bowl brothers John and Jim, head coaches of Baltimore and Los Angeles, respectively. The winner earns a potentially crucial head-to-head tiebreaker. The visitors are 2.5-point favorites and the total is 50.5 points -- the highest of Week 12.
Baltimore is a game behind first-place Pittsburgh in the AFC North -- and caught a huge break last Thursday when the Steelers were upset in Cleveland -- and already down a head-to-head tiebreaker, although the rivals play again in Week 16 in Charm City. The Ravens are -135 to win the division (they became favored again after Pittsburgh's loss), -2000 to make the playoffs and +1000 to not.
Entering Week 12, the SportsLine Projection Model had forecasted Baltimore at 30.5% to win the division and 99.9% to make the playoffs thanks to head-to-head tiebreakers over Cincinnati and Denver, but the Steelers defeat changed things. Per the New York Times' updated playoff simulator, the Ravens' chances of winning the North improved from 34% to 52% with that Pittsburgh loss. The Ravens would jump to 59% with a win and drop to 43% with a loss, per the Times. The team's updated over/under season win total is 10.5. The SportsLine model projects Baltimore for 11.1 wins, up to 11.6 with a victory Monday and down to 10.6 with a loss.
Los Angeles, sitting fifth in the conference, is 2.5 games behind first-place Kansas City (10-1) in the AFC West with the Chiefs holding the current head-to-head tiebreaker. They play again Week 14 in Kansas City. The Chargers are +800 to win the division, -1600 to make the playoffs and +800 to not. Entering Week 12, the model had the Bolts at 14.6% to win the division and 98.6% to make the playoffs. If they win, those numbers improve to 20% and 99.9% and drop to 10% and 97.6%, respectively, with a loss. L.A.'s updated season win total is 10.5 (opened at 8.5), and the model has it at 11.4 victories today. That goes to 11.9 with a win and 10.9 with a loss.
John and Jim Harbaugh are the only pair of brothers to be head coaches in NFL history with John leading the series 2-0, both while Jim was with San Francisco, including Super Bowl XLVII. That loss gnaws at the mega-competitive Jim to this day and is the biggest reason why he returned to the NFL this season after winning a national title at his alma mater Michigan last year. Both brothers have won an NFL Coach of the Year Award, with John doing so in 2019 and Jim in 2011. Jim is among the current favorites at +450.
We'll take you through every aspect of the Ravens vs. Chargers game that you need to know before you lock in your bets, including SportsLine expert picks, props, trends, DFS, injury information and everything else that will help you know which plays are worth making for the primetime matchup.
Who wins Ravens vs. Chargers in the Week 12 Monday night game, and what critical X-factor makes one side of the spread hit HARD? Join SportsLine right now to see everything you need to know to dominate your Monday Night Football bets, plus get expert picks, model sims, prop bets, DFS lineups, and more!
GET VEGAS EXPERT PICKS FOR NFL, MLB, NBA, CBB, GOLF, NHL, HORSE RACING AND MORE - PLUS ADVANCED COMPUTER SIMULATIONS, WINNING TOOLS, AND MORE!
