AFC PLAYOFFS: Patriots begin preparations for Chargers

The Patriots get ready to host the Los Angeles Chargers in an AFC divisional round game at Gillette Stadium next Sunday.

FOXBORO – With Super Bowl LIII now XXVII days away, the Patriots get back to work Monday.

Finally able to put a face on their opponent – it will be the Los Angeles Chargers following their 23-17 win over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday – the Patriots will return from their wild-card weekend bye, reporting back to Gillette Stadium for team meetings.

On-field preparations for next Sunday's (1:05 p.m.) AFC divisional round game with the Chargers at Gillette will begin when they take the practice field on Wednesday (Tuesday will be their normal day off).

So, which do you put more stock in?

The Chargers’ 8-1 record on the road this season (and their only road loss occurred in L.A., 35-23, to the Rams in Week 3), one that includes wins at Seattle, Pittsburgh, Kansas City and Baltimore?

Or Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers’ career record of 1-7 against the Patriots (including an 0-2 mark in the playoffs)? The 37-year-old’s lone win against them coming more than a decade ago, on Oct. 12, 2008, when he beat a Matt Cassel-led team, 30-10, the only time in eight games against them in which he hasn’t thrown at least one interception.

After putting up MVP-type credentials for the bulk of the season, Rivers’ production has plummeted of late: 517 yards passing with just one touchdown and four interceptions over the last three games.

On Sunday, the Chargers were able to get by despite totaling 250 yards in total offense as they limited what had been an overpowering Ravens running game to 90 yards and defensive end Melvin Ingram led a seven-sack attack on Lamar Jackson, Baltimore’s rookie quarterback, by getting to him twice. The Ravens were actually in the negative column (minus-2) in net yards passing before Jackson teamed up with wide receiver Michael Crabtree for a couple of fourth-quarter touchdowns to make things interesting.

Offensively, the Chargers (12-4 in finishing second to Kansas City during the regular season) ranked 11th in total offense during the regular season, 15th in rushing, 10th in passing and were tied for sixth in points. They ranked ninth across the board in total defense and in defending the run and the pass, eighth in points allowed.

By comparison, the Patriots (11-5 in winning the AFC East) were fifth in total and rushing offense, eighth in passing and fourth in points. They ranked 21st in total defense, 11th against the run and 22nd versus the pass, seventh in points allowed.

As well as the Chargers have played on the road this season, the Patriots have been even better in Foxboro, the only undefeated team in the league at home this season going 8-0.

Should the second-seeded Patriots defeat the Chargers, they would have a very real chance of hosting the AFC Championship game at 6:40 p.m. on Jan. 20. Top-seeded Kansas City, whose defense is a complete liability, must face sixth-seeded Indianapolis, winners of 10 of its last 11, in a divisional round game on Saturday.

A Patriots win combined with a Chiefs loss would put the Pats in a position where they would be hosting their third straight conference championship game in their quest for a third straight Super Bowl appearance. It would also put the Patriots and Colts in the AFC Championship game in a rematch of the Pats’ 45-7 romp in the Jan. 18, 2015, title game that gave us “Deflategate.”

Coordinators were talking: A couple of head coach Bill Belichick’s assistants were busy during the players’ down time.

Linebackers coach and de facto defensive coordinator Brian Flores interviewed for the head coaching jobs that are currently open in Cleveland, Denver, Green Bay and Miami, while offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels interviewed for the Packers job and turned down a request from the Cincinnati Bengals.