The Chargers and Patriots will meet Sunday in primetime on Wild Card Weekend.

The Bolts are the No. 7 seed after finishing 11-6 and in the second place in the AFC West while New England went 14-3 to secure the No. 2 seed and the AFC East.

Here are five key Chargers-Patriots stats ahead of the Wild Card Round.

1. Justin Herbert vs. Drake Maye

Two of the league's top quarterbacks will go at in Sunday night in New England.

And both Justin Herbert and Drake Maye should be in the NFL MVP conversation based on their respective 2025 seasons.

We'll start with Herbert, who navigated through up-and-down offensive line play, not to mention a plethora of injuries to the Chargers offense, to lead the Bolts to double digit wins and a playoff berth.

Herbert was exceptional under duress in 2025, tying for the NFL with 10 touchdown passes under pressure.

He also tallied 10 touchdown passes outside the pocket and 10 touchdown passes on the run, both of which led the NFL, as did his seven touchdown passes on plays that lasted longer than 4.0 seconds.

Overall, Herbert's overall Pro Football Focus grade of 83.2 ranked sixth among quarterbacks with at least 500 dropbacks in 2025.

Maye, meanwhile, ranked second among that same group of quarterbacks with a PFF grade of 90.1.

And the second-year signal caller was dynamic for the Patriots this year, posting the league's best EPA per play (0.313) among quarterbacks while also leading the league with 61 scrambles, which PFF designates as undesigned runs by a quarterback.

Simply put, the Wild Card matchup between the Bolts and Patriots just might feature the best quarterback matchup of the opening round of the postseason.

2. Key sack numbers

Both Herbert and Maye were hit and harassed quite a bit in 2025.

Herbert was sacked 54 times in 16 games while Maye was sacked 47 times in 17 games. Those were the third and fourth-most sacks against a respective quarterback this season.

That means a key storyline Sunday will be which opposing defense will be able to get to the other team's leader.

The Bolts showed much more of a pass-rushing prowess in 2025 as they tied for 10th with 45.0 total sacks. Tuli Tuipulotu led the way with 13.0 while Odafe Oweh tallied 7.5 in 12 games since being acquired in an October trade with the Ravens.

Justin Eboigbe added 6.0 sacks in his second season while Khalil Mack had 5.5 in 12 games.

New England finished tied for 21st in the NFL with five other teams with 35.0 total sacks.

The Patriots didn't have a player reach double digits but were led by Harold Landry (8.5) and K'Lavon Chaisson (7.5).

The Chargers will be tasked with keeping Herbert upright so he has time to make plays and get the ball to Keenan Allen, Ladd McConkey, Quentin Johnston and rookie Oronde Gadsden.

And the Bolts pass-rush group know they need to keep Maye contained so that he doesn't break free and hit deep shots downfield.

3. Elite coaching matchup

Each head coach on the sideline Sunday has previously earned Coach of the Year honors. But they are looking to breakthrough in the postseason with their current squads.

Chargers Head Coach Jim Harbaugh is 5-4 in his NFL coaching career but is looking for his first postseason victory with the Bolts.

Patriots Head Coach Mike Vrabel is 2-3 in his playoff career as a head coach, but that was with the Titans, meaning Vrabel is seeking his first postseason win with New England as a head coach.

Vrabel played eight seasons with the Patriots as a linebacker and won three Super Bowls. Harbaugh on Monday had high praise for Vrabel, who is in the Patriots Hall of Fame.

"The thing that sticks out, his teams play like he played. I do notice that," Harbaugh said. "Tough, gritty, physical, smart, fast. They kind of like to hit like he liked to hit. That's what I've noticed."

4. An even turnover battle

Mistakes and miscues get highlighted in the playoffs.

Especially turnovers.

But Sunday's matchup is about as even as you're going to get in terms of that area between the Bolts and Patriots.

The Chargers finished 11th in turnover differential (plus-2) in 2025, one spot below the Patriots, who were 10th with a plus-3 margin.

The Patriots had fewer giveaways — only 16 compared to 21 by the Bolts. But the Chargers had more takeaways with 23, a figure that tied for the seventh-most in the regular season.

The Patriots tied for 18th with 19 takeaways in 2025.

5. Clutch kickers

Cameron Dicker and Andres Borregales each enjoyed strong 2025 seasons.

Dicker, the AFC's Pro Bowl kicker, hit 38 of 41 tries (92.7) percent and is the most accurate kicker in NFL history with at least 100 attempts.

He was also clutch from distance, making five of six kicks from 50 yards or further. His long was 59.

Borregales was less accurate overall as he made 27 of 32 total field goals (84.8) percent. But the Venezuelan-born kicker was perfect from 50-plus as he hit all four of his tries from long range. His longest make in 2025 was also 59 yards.