luckadjusted
NFL Week 3 · 2026

NFL · Week 16 2026 · Sunday, December 27

Chargers vs Dolphins prediction and pick

Our Los Angeles Chargers at Miami Dolphins pick: Dolphins by 0.1, 50% to win. The forecast starts from what each team’s play has been worth once the luck is adjusted for, adds last season, who starts at quarterback and who is out hurt, and home field. No betting information goes in.

An early look, 13 weeks ahead: it sharpens as the game comes up. Updated every day until kickoff, then frozen and scored. After the game this page shows who deserved to win.

Why the curves are so wide: luck. Even with both teams’ strength known exactly, one game’s bounces, kicks, calls and sequencing move the final margin by about ±12.1 points (one standard deviation, measured from every play since 2019). These forecasts carry ±13.4, so about 81% of the width is that luck; the rest is what nobody knows yet about the teams. That is why a 7-point favorite still loses about 3 times in 10.

Chargers at Dolphins

Sun, Dec 27, 1:00 pm ET · Hard Rock Stadium

Dolphins by 0.1 · 50% to win

Show as a table
OutcomeChance
Chargers win49.7%
Dolphins win50.3%
Middle 50%: Chargers by 9 to Dolphins by 950%
Middle 90%: Chargers by 22 to Dolphins by 2290%
Middle 95%: Chargers by 26 to Dolphins by 2795%
Exactly Dolphins by 38.1%
Exactly Chargers by 38.1%
Exactly Dolphins by 74.9%
Exactly Chargers by 74.8%
Exactly Dolphins by 103.4%
P50
Half of games like this end between Chargers by 9 and Dolphins by 9.
P90
9 in 10 between Chargers by 22 and Dolphins by 22.
P95
19 in 20 between Chargers by 26 and Dolphins by 27.
Where the forecast comes from
Home fieldDolphins+2.3
Last seasonChargers+1.7
This season, adjusted for luckChargers+0.4
QuarterbacksChargers+0.1

The season so far

TeamRecordCoin-flip winsLuck in wins
Chargers 0–3 0.1 −1.1
Dolphins 0–3 0.3 −0.6

Coin-flip wins: the wins each team’s games were worth with only the kicks, bounces, drops and calls re-rolled, the record adjusted for luck. Luck in wins: actual wins minus what the play was worth.

Chargers vs Dolphins: questions and answers

Who will win Chargers vs Dolphins?

Our forecast picks the Dolphins, with 50% to win; the Chargers win 50% of the time.

What’s the spread for Chargers vs Dolphins?

Our spread: Dolphins −0.1. The betting line isn’t out yet. Ours uses no betting information, so where the two differ is where our read of the teams differs from the market’s.

When is Chargers vs Dolphins?

Sunday, December 27, 2026, at 1:00 pm ET, at Hard Rock Stadium.