EL SEGUNDO — Mike McDaniel could be coordinating the offense for a team that was undefeated after five games or winless after five games and he said Thursday that he wouldn’t feel any difference. So, when asked if he felt like he was coaching this week to keep his job with the Chargers, his answer was a resounding yes.
Read more NLCS Game 4: Dodgers vs. Brewers, lineups, starting pitchers, TV info
“I feel like it’s part of my job,” McDaniel said with the Chargers 0-5 and his job possibly on the line. “I feel like it’s core to my job to always feel that way. In a profession where, you know, there’s a lot of people that coach football, and if I’m not always doing that (coaching for a job) in success or failure, I’m accepting or I’m living an entitled scenario that I just disagree with.
“I need to do the very best I can all the time because the players, the organization, the fans, if I’m not as good as something else then I don’t want to hold the team hostage for anything. So, that’s second nature, just knowing that in this league, there’s a lot of competition.
“It’s a tremendous opportunity and there’s a lot of people who would love to be coaching. I think it’s disrespectful to those who chose to invest in our game and our team to not look at things that way. The second you get comfortable in this league, it’s a wrap. It’s too good.”
The pressure to win is intense, as McDaniel acknowledged, but it’s not as if he would be wise to simply try harder since he said he’s been trying harder since he accepted the job in January and then sat down over a weeklong period to watch all of Justin Herbert’s pass attempts in the NFL.
No question, things haven’t worked out for McDaniel, for Herbert or for the Chargers five weeks into a season that simply hasn’t unfolded as expected or hoped. The marriage between McDaniel and Herbert was supposed to unlock all the strong-armed quarterback’s best attributes.
It’s been a failure on the field, on the scoreboard and in the standings. The Chargers’ offense is one of the NFL’s least productive. The Chargers are 30th in the 32-team league with an average of 16.8 points per game and also 30th in net passing yards per game, a meager 164.8.
The Chargers’ sputtering offense is the biggest reason for their losses to the Arizona Cardinals, Las Vegas Raiders, Buffalo Bills, Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos. Injuries, including to Pro Bowl tackles Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater and wide receiver Ladd McConkey have played a part, too.
Four rookies started on the offensive line during the Chargers’ 23-17 loss to the Broncos this past Sunday, and with Alt likely out for Sunday’s game against the unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs because of a neck injury and Slater on injured reserve after undergoing ankle surgery, matters aren’t likely to change.
Read more PHOTOS: Dodgers vs. Brewers in NLCS Game 4 at Dodger Stadium
McConkey (foot) has practiced this week on a limited basis as has Quentin Johnston (chest). Neither played in the Chargers’ loss to the Broncos, leaving Herbert without two of his favorite targets. Tre’ Harris injured his hamstring during the Denver game and might be sidelined Sunday.
So, while there are no excuses for the Chargers’ 0-5 record, there are legitimate reasons for it beyond the obvious inability for Herbert to click as anticipated in McDaniel’s offense. Herbert hasn’t looked comfortable and hasn’t produced his customary results.
All of his statistics are below his career averages, including his completion percentage of 59.4% (compared to 66.5% over his first six seasons). His passer rating of 70.2 is the lowest of his career through the first five games of a season. He has been sacked 17 times, second-most in the NFL.
Only Deshaun Watson of the Cleveland Browns has been sacked more often (19 times).
With the results and the numbers stacked against Herbert, McDaniel and the Chargers after five games so far, is it any wonder Chargers fans and NFL pundits across the known football universe have speculated about trades and firings before the season spirals further out of control?
McDaniel said he won’t allow the outside chatter to alter his course.
“I will be doing my very best because, from an integrity standpoint, I think it’s really insulting to do anything else,” he said. “That won’t change. I would be so embarrassed if now I told you, ‘Well, now I’m going to try harder. Like, what? What have you been doing?’
“So, we’re confident in the players we have and, you know, the improvement that I see before the results, generally, lead to good things. But talk is cheap, you gotta do it.”
Read more Lakers’ regular-season starting lineup still uncertain ahead of preseason finale