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Home/NFL/AFC West/Los Angeles Chargers
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Gridiron EdgeAFC West

Los Angeles Chargers: 2026 Win Total & Market Edge

Board as of · prices live

The prediction-market read on the Chargers: our 10,000-season simulation projects 8.1 wins in 2026 (21st of 32, Average tier; raw model 8.1), beside the live Kalshi win-total line. Full schedule, per-game win probabilities and AFC West standing below.

2026 win total: our model vs. Kalshi

Chargers logo

Los Angeles Chargers

AFC West · 19th power rating · Average
Kalshi live
8.1 projected wins
± 2.0 · 21st of 32
Kalshi market
9.75w
Ladder-implied wins
7 Oracles sim
8.14w
59.6% backtested
Divergence
-1.61w
Market higher

Model agrees with the market

Divergence is projected wins minus the ladder-implied market line, in wins — HIGH on the one ladder every season-wins surface grades on (STRONG ≥2.0 · HIGH ≥1.5 · MODERATE ≥1.0); OVER / UNDER fires at ±2.0. Projected wins are the 10,000-season simulation mean; the raw model reads 8.1. No single rung sits near 50¢.

See all 32 teams on the win-totals board → Informational only — verify the market and trade responsibly.

The consensus spread

Three independent estimates of the same season on one line: the expected wins implied by the live Kalshi ladder, our 10,000-season simulation, and EA’s Madden 27 simulation. Where they disagree is the whole signal.

1.61 wins of disagreement
8.14 Our sim
8.22 Madden 27
9.75 Kalshi
6.67.88.910.111.3

Both independent models sit on the same side of the market line — our sim at 8.14 and the Madden simulation at 8.22 against 9.75 implied wins. That is the cleanest version of this signal.

Madden is a bit higher on the Chargers than our model, 4 places apart — a real but modest difference of opinion.

Where the season actually lands

A point estimate cannot tell a trader whether to take a position — the full distribution against the contract line can. Bars are the Madden 27 simulation over 10,000 seasons; the dashed marker is the live contract.

Kalshi 9.75 01234567891011121314151617
32%
our probability
of clearing 9.75
Madden sim: 33%
-18.4pp vs a coin flip

Our probability from the 10,000-season simulation (mean 8.14 wins; raw model 8.13 ± 1.99). Bars: Madden 27 sim-2026, 10,000 iterations. Two methods, no shared inputs.

The Ladder — Chargers

All ladders →

The season simulation at every Kalshi win-total rung, then the widest player-prop gap on this club this week. The rungs the market has not listed two-sided yet are drawn from the simulation alone.

ChargersSeason winsLOCATIONBuy YES · 10+ wins
1+ wins9+ wins17+ wins
Widest gap
🔒
at 10+ wins
Market
🔒
Kalshi · P(YES)
PMP Model
🔒
display-calibrated

We think the median sits somewhere else than the market does.

RungMarketModelGap
1+ wins🔒outside rangethin
2+ winsoutside rangenot listed
3+ winsoutside rangenot listed
4+ winsoutside rangenot listed
5+ winsoutside rangenot listed
6+ wins🔒outside rangeYES
7+ wins🔒outside rangeYES
8+ wins🔒🔒🔒YES
9+ wins🔒🔒🔒YES
10+ wins🔒🔒🔒YES
11+ wins🔒outside rangeYES
12+ wins🔒outside rangeYES
13+ wins🔒outside rangeYES
14+ wins🔒outside rangeYES
15+ wins🔒outside rangethin
16+ wins🔒outside rangethin
17+ wins🔒outside rangethin

Rung-by-rung numbers are a Pro feature. Unlock Pro →

Justin HerbertPass TDsONE STRIKE PRICED
Widest gap
one strike priced
Market
Kalshi · P(YES)
PMP Model
display-calibrated

Our number is published at the called strike only; the market curves are complete.

RungMarketBooksModelGap
2+ pass TDs🔒YES

Rung-by-rung numbers are a Pro feature. Unlock Pro →

Justin HerbertRush YdsONE STRIKE PRICED
Widest gap
one strike priced
Market
Kalshi · P(YES)
PMP Model
display-calibrated

Our number is published at the called strike only; the market curves are complete.

RungMarketBooksModelGap
25+ rush yds🔒YES
30+ rush yds🔒YES
60+ rush yds🔒YES

Rung-by-rung numbers are a Pro feature. Unlock Pro →

Gold is our distribution, parchment is the Kalshi contract at each strike; the band between them is green where our probability is higher and purple where it is lower. We publish our number only where we have measured it to be calibrated, between 30% and 70%; rungs outside that range show the market only. A contract pays $1 if it settles YES, so a price in cents is an implied probability. Prediction markets carry risk; contracts can settle at $0.

Market edges

The season contract and the single game most likely to move it, graded on the same thresholds every other Gridiron Edge surface uses.

◆ HIGH confidence 9.75 · Under

Season wins under 9.75

Our 10,000-season simulation projects 8.14 (raw model 8.13), the Madden 27 simulation 8.22, against 9.75 market-implied wins — a -1.61-win gap. HIGH on the wins ladder (STRONG ≥2.0 · HIGH ≥1.5 · MODERATE ≥1.0); a side is flagged only at the 2.0-win STRONG rung, so the honest read is no position.

◆ MODERATE confidence Wk 9 · Home

Week 9 vs Texans

The truest coin flip on the schedule at 50%. Games this close are where a season win total is actually decided — and where a live in-week contract is most likely to be mispriced. Full read →

Informational only. Contracts can settle at $0 — verify the market and trade responsibly.

Power rating breakdown

Diverging from league average rather than four flat numbers, so a positive reads as a positive at a glance. Points per game.

Overall -0.6
Offense -0.9
Defense -0.1
Special teams +0.4

Overall -0.6 ranks 19th of 32 (Average tier). How Chargers rank on the points scale → Re-weight the model yourself →

Methodology: DAEPA model docs → (59.6% backtested straight-up accuracy across 3,266 games, no market line used).

The season path

Seventeen weeks as a heat ribbon — the shape of the season in one glance, each cell linking to that game’s full read. The sortable table stays below it.

8.13 cumulative expected wins
Loss likelyWin likely— cumulative expected wins

Roster shape vs the league

Nine position groups against league average. Each axis is scaled on its own league range — a shared 0-100 scale flattens every roster into the same circle.

9 Quarterback 90
13 O-Line 81
28 Receiver 79
18 Tight End 80
29 Running Back 81
22 Pass Rush 80
20 Linebacker 76
9 Secondary 83
4 Special Teams 81

Dashed violet ring = league average. Number chip = rank of 32. Source: Madden 27 launch team composites (derived unit aggregates, no per-player data).

2026 schedule & model win probabilities

All 17 regular-season games. Our % is the DAEPA margin (power-rating differential + 2.5-point home-field) run through a Normal model, σ=14.4 — those 17 numbers sum to the raw model's 8.1 wins; the 8.1-win headline above is the 10,000-season simulation, which adds rating uncertainty (and fits its own home-field, 2.0) on top of these same ratings. Madden % is the same question asked of Madden 27 talent composites, a model that shares none of our inputs.

WeekOpponentH/AOur %Madden %
Wk 1vs Arizona CardinalsHOME65%61%
Wk 2vs Las Vegas RaidersHOME71%60%
Wk 3at Buffalo BillsAWAY32%38%
Wk 4at Seattle SeahawksAWAY28%41%
Wk 5vs Denver BroncosHOME52%55%
Wk 6at Kansas City ChiefsAWAY43%36%
Wk 8at Los Angeles RamsAWAY28%34%
Wk 9vs Houston TexansHOME50%57%
Wk 10at Baltimore RavensAWAY38%33%
Wk 11vs New York JetsHOME66%67%
Wk 14at Las Vegas RaidersAWAY58%48%
Wk 15vs San Francisco 49ersHOME53%43%
Wk 16at Miami DolphinsAWAY51%61%
Wk 17vs Kansas City ChiefsHOME57%47%
Wk 18at Denver BroncosAWAY38%44%

Chargers player props vs the Kalshi line

Our projection against the live Kalshi contract. Every prop is an “X or more” contract that pays $1 if the player gets there, so the price of the side we call, in cents,is the market’s implied probability — the edge is the gap between that and ours, in percentage points. Closest strike to our projection first.

Chargers player props vs the Kalshi line — our odds against the Kalshi price of the called side, on the strike closest to our projection
PlayerContractCallOur oddsMktEdgeTier
Justin HerbertQB2+ pass TDsover 1.5NO57%36¢+21.1 ppSTRONG
Ladd McConkeyWR5+ receptionsover 4.5NOPro subscribers onlyPro subscribers onlyPro subscribers onlyHIGH

All 54 player-prop edges for Week 1Locked numbers are Pro.

Chargers props: where the market prices are

The market’s prices, not ours: each Kalshi strike beside the sportsbook consensus read at the same line, and where the cheaper price for each side actually is. A gap is a price difference, not a call — the Oracle calls above are the opinion.

Chargers props: where the market prices are — Kalshi mid vs sportsbook consensus per strike, widest gap first
PlayerPropKalshiConsensusGapBest price
Charlie KolarLAC v ARI15+ rec yds53.5¢Kalshi only
Justin HerbertQBLAC v ARI2+ pass TDs63.5¢Kalshi only
Justin HerbertLAC v ARI175+ pass yds79.5¢off-ladderKalshi only
Justin HerbertLAC v ARI200+ pass yds65.0¢off-ladderover · Kalshi 72.4¢
Justin HerbertLAC v ARI225+ pass yds51.5¢off-ladderKalshi only
Justin HerbertLAC v ARI250+ pass yds35.0¢off-ladderover · Kalshi 43.7¢
Justin HerbertLAC v ARI350+ pass yds6.0¢off-ladderover · Kalshi 7.5¢
Justin HerbertLAC v ARI25+ rush yds41.5¢off-ladderKalshi only

See all 19 priced prop strikes on the board →+ 72 listed on Kalshi, not yet priced.

AFC West ladder

Projected wins across the division, leader in gold — and four internal reads a click away.

Broncos 9.1 +1.2 Chiefs 8.2 -0.6
Chargers 8.1 -0.6
Raiders 6.0 -6.0

Model has the Chargers 3rd in the AFC West. Division hub →

10,000-season simulation

How it works →

Our own preseason board, played across the real 2026 schedule 10,000 times with the league's actual tiebreaker procedure. The projection above is the middle of this; these are the odds around it. The sim fits its own home-field (2.0 points, from played games) — a separate fit from the +2.5 the game model uses on matchup pages.

Sim average wins

8.1

10,000 seasons · 32% reach 10+

Make playoffs

41%

28% win 6 or fewer

Win division

26%

5% take the 1 seed

Win Super Bowl

2.0%

21st of 32 · 5% reach it

The Chargers draw a 0.499 opponent win rate — the 18th-hardest schedule in the league.

10,000 simulated seasons on our preseason power ratings. Real NFL tiebreakers, real 2026 schedule. No injuries, no in-season roster change, no market prices.

Madden 27 outlook

Full board →

A second opinion, built from Madden 27 launch ratings alone and played across the real 2026 schedule 10,000 times. It knows nothing about our own model — which is what makes the disagreement worth reading.

Madden rank

15

81.2 composite · QB 90

Simulated wins

8.2

33% reach 10+

Playoffs

41%

20% win division

Super Bowl

2.3%

SoS 0.514 (5th hardest)

Madden is a bit higher on the Chargers than our model, 4 places apart — a real but modest difference of opinion.

Madden-only inputs — no injuries, no in-season roster change, no market prices. Average error on a season win total is 2.27 wins, so the distribution is the product, not the mean. The 10,000-season simulation →

Chargers 2026 — frequently asked

What is the Los Angeles Chargers win total for 2026?

The Kalshi KXNFLWINS-27 ladder implies an expected 9.7 wins for the Chargers in 2026. Our 10,000-season simulation on our DAEPA power ratings projects 8.1 wins — a 1.6-win agreement with the market (HIGH on our wins ladder).

Where do the Chargers rank in our 2026 power ratings?

The Chargers sit at a -0.6-point power rating — 19th of 32 — in the Average tier. That rating (offense -0.9, defense -0.1, special teams +0.4) is the input behind every Chargers prediction-market edge we publish.

Can you trade Los Angeles Chargers games on Kalshi?

Yes. Kalshi is a CFTC-regulated exchange that lists Chargers season win totals (KXNFLWINS), individual game winners (KXNFLGAME, which for 2026 opened months ahead of kickoff), plus division, conference and Super Bowl champion markets — available to traders in all 50 states. You take a yes/no position that settles at $1 or $0.

What division are the Chargers in for 2026?

The Chargers play in the AFC West, alongside Broncos, Chiefs, Raiders. Our model has them projected 3rd in the AFC West on 8.1 expected wins.

Trade Chargers markets on Kalshi →Kalshi NFL hub →All 32 win totals →Full 18-week schedule →

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