Offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel will offer a long-awaited and much-anticipated look at his new and exciting game plan for the Chargers’ new and exciting offense Thursday night when they play the Texans in Houston, the first of three preseason games this month.
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Don’t get too excited, though.
What you see Thursday won’t be what you see when the Chargers open the season for real Sept. 13 against the Arizona Cardinals. McDaniel isn’t expected to reveal too much of what he and the rest of the Chargers believe will be a radical departure from Greg Roman’s old and stodgy offense.
For starters, Trey Lance and DJ Uiagalelei will split the quarterbacking duties in place of starter Justin Herbert. Many of the plays the Chargers have been running in 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 drills over the first weeks of training camp won’t be called in the preseason game against the Texans.
Lance and Uiagalelei are locked in a competition to serve as Herbert’s backup, just as they were in training camp last year. Lance ultimately won the battle, filling in for Herbert in four games, starting the regular-season finale against the Denver Broncos, a 16-3 loss at Mile High Stadium.
Offensive linemen Rashawn Slater, Trey Pipkins III, Tyler Biadasz, Cole Strange and Joe Alt aren’t expected to play, either, giving way to players fighting for roster spots as their backups. The left guard position continues to be the most compelling training camp battle.
“I’m comfortable going on the record as saying I’m going to run the exact same plays as I run in the preseason (as in the regular season),” McDaniel joked the other day before adopting a more serious tone. “No, you’re not going to show the things that are going to give you a competitive advantage going into Week 1.”
So, don’t expect to see as many players in motion as you did when watching McDaniel coach the Miami Dolphins over the past four seasons, before the Chargers hired him to replace Roman as their offensive coordinator this offseason. Don’t expect the dynamic offense you’re likely to see in Week 1.
“There will be some concepts I won’t put out there,” McDaniel said.
After all, the Chargers play each of their three preseason opponents – the Texans, San Francisco 49ers and the Rams – in the regular season. There’s zero sense in giving those opponents or any of the other teams the Chargers will face in the 2026 regular season any advanced screenings of their plans.
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It doesn’t mean McDaniel and the Chargers aren’t taking Thursday’s game lightly. The opposite is true. It will be, after all, McDaniel’s first chance to call plays for his new team, his first opportunity to see a lineup of mostly backups and roster hopefuls fighting for positions on the initial 53-man roster.
“I mean, preseason game or not, there’s a paid attendance,” said McDaniel, the Chargers’ fifth offensive coordinator in Herbert’s seven NFL seasons. “We’re very privileged to do the things we do. I’m excited for the play clock decision-making. I’m excited for a lot of guys’ opportunities, who have worked their whole lives for.
“It’s a very big deal regardless of whether you’re on the inside of the 53(-man roster) or on the outside. This is basically a resume creation for those guys who do not make the active roster, you know, for the other 31 teams. Everything that people have done up to this point, we’ve kind of kept under our roof. We’re the only ones who know the secrets of how our guys have been playing, and this is the time to showcase everything they have been working on.
“So, I get excited for preseason games just because it’s been at least six months since you’ve been in a game situation. It’s my favorite thing about the job.”
Coach Jim Harbaugh said last week the plan for Thursday’s game would be to have 15 starters or veterans join the pregame warmup but not play. But another 27 starters or veterans would warm up and play against the Texans. Additional starters would play in the second and third preseason games.
The Chargers play host to the 49ers on Aug. 20 and the Rams on Aug. 27.
Cutdown day, when rosters must be trimmed to 53 players, is Aug. 30.
Practice squads can be established Aug. 31.
“In the second preseason game, we’d like to see the starters, the veterans, play a series,” Harbaugh said when asked how he might field teams for the preseason games against the Rams and the 49ers at SoFi Stadium. “In the third game, we’d like to see them play a multi-series.”
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