Good teams find ways to win. Bad teams find ways to lose. Right now, after two losses to start the season, it must be written that the Chargers are a bad team. They are mistake prone, disorganized, unsure, battered and looking ahead to the toughest part of their schedule.
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What we learned and what we heard after losses to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 1 and the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 2 could fill a 500-page novel, and maybe that’s the biggest sign that the Chargers’ season is on the brink as they prepare to face the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.
What comes next is anyone’s guess, but the Chargers have plenty of work to do before taking the field to face the high-scoring Bills. Here’s a closer look at what’s gone haywire offensively and how the Chargers might not get back on track with only a few days to prepare for their first road test:
OFFENSIVE OVERLOAD
If the Chargers believed they solved their offensive troubles by firing Greg Roman last January and hiring Mike McDaniel as their coordinator, then they were dead wrong. Maybe the incomplete passes, sacks, false starts and holding penalties weren’t all Roman’s fault, after all.
If anything, the Chargers’ offense is in worse shape now with McDaniel than it was with Roman. Quarterback Justin Herbert’s game has deteriorated to start this season. It’s a small sample size, to be sure, but his completion percentage is down, his yardage is down and so is his passer rating.
What’s up are his interceptions. He has three in two games so far. He had four interceptions in 17 games in Roman’s first season on the job, in 2024. The consensus seems to be that McDaniel has overloaded Herbert and the offensive unit with too much information.
Sometimes, as the pressure closes in, Herbert appears to stand 5-foot-6 in the pocket rather than his listed 6-6. He is uncomfortable and unprotected. His passes are batted down all too often. But there is an overlooked aspect to his play, and it has everything to do with who’s no longer with him.
Clearly, Herbert misses wide receivers Keenan Allen and Mike Williams. Allen was as close to a mortal lock on third downs as any QB could hope for, and Williams was a magician on passes into traffic that could best be termed 50-50 balls, especially along the sidelines.
Ladd McConkey is the only reliable replacement for Allen. McConkey is the only member of the wide receiver corps capable of making the sort of sure-handed plays that Allen, now with the Indianapolis Colts, once did. There is no replacement for Williams, who retired before last season.
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IS HERBERT TO BLAME?
Herbert often appears robotic off the field, dispassionate in his reactions when compared to at least one former strong-armed Chargers quarterback. Is it fair to compare the reserved Oregonian with Philip Rivers, a son of the South who wore his emotions on his sleeve?
No, but we’ll do it anyway.
Rivers had an unmistakable swagger, screaming at referees while mic’d up to get their attention, screaming at teammates to get them fired up, screaming at opponents to celebrate “a 90-yard touchdown, a 90-yard touchdown!” Or yelling “dang” or “dadgummit” when things went wrong.
Rivers was a fan favorite for all those reasons and so much more.
Herbert? Well, we don’t know much about him other than he’s tall, is engaged to a pop star by the name of Madison Beer and enjoys playing football. He reveals little about himself in his sessions with reporters. Only occasionally does he show his emotions on the field, as he did Sunday.
When the Chargers fumbled on a critical third-and-1 play at their own 32-yard line, one of their six against the Raiders, Herbert was obviously furious that a snap while in shotgun formation struck the leg of wide receiver Tre’ Harris, who went in late motion, and fouled up the play.
“I think it was because it was a big play for us and we didn’t execute,” Herbert said simply when asked why he was so angry after the third-quarter play went awry, with the Chargers trailing the Raiders 17-14 with plenty of time left to take the lead. “That’s something I can do a better job at.”
Hard to imagine Rivers leaving it at that in one of his press conferences, isn’t it? Rivers might have even explained in great detail what in the wide world of sports the Chargers were doing in a shotgun formation on a third-and-1 play when they should have called for a quarterback sneak.
WHAT COMES NEXT
A week of soul-searching and practice awaits the Chargers before jetting off to face the Bills (2-0) on Sunday to begin the toughest part of their schedule, a seven-game slog against nothing but playoff teams from 2025, including the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks (2-0) in Week 4.
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