Chiefs (9-4) at Chargers (8-5)

When: 5:20 p.m. Thursday

Where: SoFi Stadium

TV/Radio: Fox (Ch. 11), NFL Network, Amazon; 98.7 FM; 105.5 FM/94.3 FM (Spanish); Sirius 83

Line: Chiefs by 3 points

Notable injury designations: Chargers: RB Austin Ekeler (questionable; ankle), S Derwin James (questionable; hamstring), CB Asante Samuel Jr. (questionable; concussion), S Alohi Gilman (questionable; quadricep)

Chiefs: LB Willie Gay (out; COVID), CB L’Jarius Sneed (out; personal), OL Andrew Wylie (questionable; knee)

What’s at stake? First place for the AFC West will be on the line Thursday night. If the Chargers are able to beat the Chiefs for a second time this season, they’d move to first in the division standings because of the head-to-head tiebreaker. The Chargers would then have to hold their top spot with games remaining against the Houston Texans (2-11), Denver Broncos (7-6) and Las Vegas Raiders (6-7) to close out the regular season. The Chiefs have a tougher schedule with games against the Pittsburgh Steelers (6-6-1), Cincinnati Bengals (7-6) and Broncos. But if the Chiefs win Thursday, they’d have a commanding two-game lead over the Chargers with three games to go before the postseason.

Who’s better? The Chiefs will enter SoFi Stadium with a six-game winning streak and have made a defensive turnaround in the past month. The Chiefs have held their past three opponents to nine points and haven’t allowed more than 17 points during the six-game winning streak. Former Chargers edge rusher Melvin Ingram has helped improve the Chiefs’ defense since being traded by the Pittsburgh Steelers last month. Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert has delivered sensational performances in wins the past two weeks against the Bengals and New York Giants. The Chargers will also see the return of wide receiver Keenan Allen, who missed last week because he tested positive for COVID-19. The Chiefs will need quarterback Patrick Mahomes and his playmakers to break out of their funk to keep pace with the Chargers’ offense.

Matchup to watch: Chargers wide receiver Mike Williams versus the Chiefs’ secondary. Williams has had his best career performances versus the Chiefs, including in the 30-24 victory in Week 3, when he had seven receptions for 122 yards and two touchdowns. Williams also had the memorable walk-off two-point conversion reception in the 2018 win against the Chiefs on Thursday night. It’s going to take a team effort from the Chiefs’ defensive backs to contain Williams, who has 61 catches for 915 yards and seven touchdowns.

Chargers win if: … The short-handed offensive line buys Herbert enough time to operate the offense. Third-year offensive tackle Trey Pipkins will start at left tackle in place of stud rookie Rashawn Slater, who tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday. Pipkins has struggled in his eight career starts, and he’ll be one of three backup offensive linemen starting, along with right tackle Storm Norton and right guard Michael Schofield. The thin offensive line doesn’t need to be perfect, but they need to provide enough time for Herbert to scramble outside of the pocket and keep plays alive. The Chargers’ offense struggled against the Denver Broncos in Week 12 when left guard Matt Feiler was out with an ankle injury. They’ll have their hands full versus Ingram and Frank Clark, but they might have caught a break with Pro Bowl defensive tackle Chris Jones being on the COVID-19 reserve list.

Fantasy sleeper: The opportunities will be limited for rookie wide receiver Josh Palmer because Allen will return to the starting lineup, but expect the Chargers to keep him involved. Palmer earned opportunities because of what he did last week against the Giants while filling in for Allen. Palmer is capable of playing in the slot and has shown that he’s a reliable target near the line of scrimmage. Herbert has shown trust in Palmer, especially on third downs.

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Prediction: The Chiefs are the five-time defending AFC West champions, but the Chargers have gotten most of the attention because of Herbert and his spectacular plays. The Chiefs will be motivated to show on prime-time TV that Mahomes, tight end Travis Kelce and wide receiver Tyreek Hill still run the best offense in the NFL. The Chargers got the best of the Chiefs in the first matchup, but the defending division champs have woken up and will take the second matchup, 27-24.