NFL expert Lindsay Rhodes believes in Chargers, 49ers

On Stacking The Box, DirecTV fantasy football guru Lindsay Rhodes talked up the Los Angeles Chargers, and stated her trust in the San Francisco 49ers.

California might be the place to be for NFL football this year.

Of the three teams, two reached the NFC Championship Game last season. The other, the Los Angeles Chargers, is one of the favorites to win the Lombardi Trophy this year after significant defensive additions in the offseason.

This week, Lindsay Rhodes, host of The NFL Rhodes Show along with her work at DirecTV Sunday Ticket and SiriusXM, joined Matt Verderame on the Stacking The Box Podcast. Among the litany of topics touched on, Rhodes expressed her belief in the Chargers as not only a Super Bowl contender, but her pick to win it all for the first time in franchise history.

Lindsay Rhodes has the Chargers winning Super Bowl LVII

“The two teams I feel most confident about, across the board, going into the season, are the Bills and the Bucs,” Rhodes said. “But that feels like a really boring Super Bowl pick to me. I want to pick the Chargers, I want to put the Chargers in the Super Bowl. But I can’t decide if that’s a more betting underdog, sexy story. It doesn’t make any sense, but I’m going to go Chargers-Bucs.”

Staying out west, Rhodes and Verderame also discussed the 49ers and their trajectory with second-year quarterback Trey Lance taking over for veteran Jimmy Garoppolo. Despite the upheaval under center, Rhodes sees San Francisco as still being one of the league’s better teams, largely because of who stands on the sideline.

“It’s just tied to the coaching staff,” said Rhodes of her confidence in the Niners to contend. “We’ve seen it from them, we’ve seen them turn people over. Who is their wide receiver this year? I don’t know, but it’s going to be somebody. Who is their running back this year? I don’t know, but it’s going to be somebody. The way they dealt with injuries, turnover and just plugging guys in, it feels to me like the scheme and the coaching, and all that stuff is put in place to have success.”