The Los Angeles Chargers under Jim Harbaugh have been remarkably consistent.
In 2024, they finished 11-6 and in second place in the AFC West, only to lose 32-12 to the Houston Texans in the Wild Card round of the NFL playoffs. In 2025, they finished … 11-6 and in second place in the AFC West. They then promptly lost in the Wild Card round 16-3 to the New England Patriots.
While the Chargers’ defense improved immediately under Harbaugh and defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, there’s been a sense that the offense was not living up to its potential. Quarterback Justin Herbert has the traits to succeed in the modern NFL, elite arm strength and the ability to keep defenses honest by moving out of the pocket and scrambling when plays break down.
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Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers throws a pass in the first quarter against the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., on Nov. 2, 2025. (Johnnie Izquierdo/Getty Images)
Offensive line play and injuries have slowed the Chargers’ attack down, however, and they scored just 368 points in 2025, well behind the league-leading Rams with 518. Harbaugh hoped to address some of those issues by bringing in former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel to run the offense.
The first opportunity to see that new-look Chargers scheme in action though, was a disaster. Putting it mildly. Los Angeles entered their season opener at SoFi Stadium as significant favorites over the Arizona Cardinals, coming off a dismal 3-14 season that saw them allow the fourth most points of any team in the NFL.
Sure enough, Arizona dominated. The Chargers’ defense couldn’t get off the field, allowing the Cardinals to dominate the time of possession battle from 37:31 to 22:29. Arizona had 393 yards on offense and allowed just 268, while forcing two turnovers and blocking a punt in the fourth quarter.
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Herbert never really got into a rhythm offensively, threw an interception, and unsurprisingly given the team he plays for, was frequently hurried on dropbacks. After the game, he seemed, well, less than pleased with how it played out.
Offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel and Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers look on before a preseason game against the San Francisco 49ers at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., on Aug. 20, 2026. (Getty Images)
“We just didn’t execute,” he said when asked about the lack of success on offense. “It’s on us as an offense to not have penalties, we gotta score points in the red zone, we didn’t execute on third downs, and we didn’t move the ball like we needed to.”
When asked whether he “saw the safety” on the interception, Herbert responded, “Yeah.”
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Given an opportunity to elaborate, he added, “Yeah, it was a shot play that I threw, and he made a good play on it.”
As to whether it was Arizona’s defense or the new scheme that caused the disconnect, Herbert once again was less than enthused. “Yeah they played well, but it’s on us to play better. It’s on us to go score points, to make sure we’re doing everything we can on third down and in the red zone. You know, we didn’t play the way we wanted to, and we’re going to have to watch film and get better from it.”
Chargers fans pointed out that it seemed like, from his body language and delivery, Herbert had already given up on the season. Whether that’s true or not, Sunday was the continuation of a frustrating run of offensive line play for Los Angeles.
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Across 99 career games with the Chargers, Herbert has been sacked 241 times. For context, Andrew Luck, who famously walked away from the game citing the physical toll of repeated hits, was sacked 185 times in 94 career games with the Indianapolis Colts. That’s how bad it is.
One offensive line moment from the loss also drew attention from fans on social media, as three Chargers linemen blocked one player as two Cardinals defenders ran through to sack Herbert.
Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh speaks during a news conference after an NFL game against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, Sept. 13, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Caroline Brehman)
Head coach Jim Harbaugh admitted as much after the game, saying, “We made some preseason-type of mistakes. Now in retrospect, I wish we’d played our guys a little bit more in the preseason and given them those reps.”
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Herbert isn’t going anywhere, and still has the talent to lead the Chargers on a deep postseason run. But if the mentality and organizational alignment isn’t there, that might be more of a pipe dream than competent offensive line play in Los Angeles.
