Who Will Los Angeles Chargers vs. Jacksonville Jaguars? A.I. Predicts
Let's take a moment and appreciate the Jags.
The Jacksonville Jaguars are legitimately good, and it’s the first time in a decade anyone can say that. The Los Angeles Chargers aren’t as bad as their 0-4 start made them look, but they have little margin for error against the might of the Jags. A hive mind of about 40 NFL fans predicts Jacksonville will win Sunday.
At 5-3, the Jaguars have already equalled or exceeded their win total from each of the past six seasons. They have a point differential through eight games of 89 points, which theoretically puts them on pace to finish a point shy of the 179-point differential from their best ever 14-2 campaign in 1999. This team probably isn’t that good, but considering they haven’t even won six or more games since 2010, let’s just enjoy how good the team has looked so far.
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From their last meeting in September 2016.
To predict the result of this and other games, Unanimous A.I. used what’s known as swarm intelligence to forecast the week’s slate. About 40 NFL fans worked together as a hive mind to make picks. As you can see in the animation below, each participant controlled a little golden magnet and used it to drag the puck toward the answer they thought was the most likely outcome. As the users saw the puck move toward a particular outcome, it triggers a psychological response. They readjust their decision-making, building toward a consensus. Here’s Unanimous A.I. founder Louis Rosenberg explaining swarm intelligence at a recent TEDx Talk.
Unanimous A.I. has made some scarily accurate predictions in the past using swarm intelligence, as our previous article explains. For instance, the swarm went a perfect 7-0 in its most recommended picks for a recent English Premier League slate.
The hive mind picks Jacksonville here, albeit with just low confidence behind the pick. That said, 82 percent brainpower is decent, and a lot of the dissent pulled for the Jaguars with high confidence.
The swarm predicts Jacksonville will win with seven to nine points, with 82 percent brainpower behind that choice. Jacksonville is currently favored by four points in Vegas.
The game kicks off 1 p.m. Eastern Sunday on CBS.
