Who is playing Thursday Night Football in Week 15 (and why should we care)?

Under normal circumstances, an AFC West showdown on Thursday Night Football would be must-watch entertainment. But not this time around.

When the NFL schedule-makers were putting together the finishing touches for primetime games late in the season, they were probably excited to see what would happen in Week 15 on Thursday Night Football.

After all, two AFC West rivals squaring off against each other always makes for a good showing, right? Especially if either or both of them have stakes in the postseason, which many teams are looking at right now.

Unfortunately, the opening game for Week 15 might be drudgery to watch for all except the most diehard of fans of either squad.

But there are still reasons to tune in, believe it or not.

Raiders will host Chargers in AFC West showdown on Thursday Night Football

While the defending Super Bowl-champion Kansas City Chiefs are the class of the AFC West, the rest of the division was anticipated to be a powerhouse in 2023.

Well, that idea flunked.

For Thursday night, we'll be treated to two 5-8 teams, the Las Vegas Raiders hosting the Los Angeles Chargers at Allegiant Stadium.

The Raiders, who've lost three in a row and were shut out 3-0 (yes, that's the real score) by the Minnesota Vikings last Sunday, can perhaps rebound against a Los Angeles team that's dropped four of its last five with the lone win coming over the lowly New England Patriots.

Be it head coaching controversy, as the Raiders have already fired an underachieving Josh McDaniels while the Bolts should fire Brandon Staley, or subpar quarterbacking that saw former San Francisco 49ers starter Jimmy Garoppolo benched while LA's Justin Herbert is out indefinitely with a fractured finger in his throwing hand, it's safe to say both of these AFC West teams are eagerly looking forward to the offseason and better futures.

Until then, there are some bragging rights on the table. Unless both teams are hoping for better draft positioning in 2024 and would prefer losing instead of winning.

Either way, you can watch this game (if you want) on Thursday night by streaming it on Amazon Prime, and the game will kick off at 8:20 p.m. ET from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada.

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