The Los Angeles Chargers had great expectations for 2026. Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt returned from injury. The middle of the offensive line had been rebuilt. A head coach with a resume dense with wins was ready to play some bully ball on the ground, then turn a high octane passing offense over to new coordinator Mike McDaniel and a ready-to-peak Justin Herbert.
Instead, the team has fallen flat on its face. Los Angeles opened with back-to-back 26-14 defeats despite being significant betting favorites against the Arizona Cardinals and Las Vegas Raiders. Losses to more respectable competition followed (and the Raiders wound up impressing over the first month of the season), but the Chargers sit at 0-4 with scant hopes for a return to the postseason
for what could be Herbert's first playoff win.
Could this saga end with Jim Harbaugh, Super Bowl NFL coach and 2023 NCAA Champion, getting fired?
What has gone wrong for the Chargers in 2026?
Harbaugh's offseason seemed to define a shift in philosophy. Hiring McDaniel brought a head coach who'd propelled De'Von Achane to Pro Bowl heights, but his biggest accomplishment was turning Tua Tagovailoa into a player who received MVP votes and finished with a passer rating over 101 three straight seasons. While Herbert had long been a darling of tape grinders, he lacked the gaudy numbers that would back up his claim as an elite quarterback.
But McDaniel's arrival also came with offseason moves that placed a spotlight on the team's running attack. New starters arrived for all three interior lineman spots, though center Tyler Biadasz suffered a season-ending knee injury in the preseason. By adding Charlie Kolar and Alec Ingold as space-clearers and occasional pass catchers and bringing in Keaton Mitchell to beef up the Omarion Hampton/Kimani Vidal tailback platoon, Los Angeles was primed to at least replicate some of the run-heavy traits of his 2023 Michigan team, which ran the ball 60 percent of the time en route to a title.
Instead, the new linemen underwhelmed. Hampton has failed to live up to his potential. The run gameranks 25th in the NFL in expected points added (EPA). The pressure fell on Herbert to step up behind a balky offensive line and justify his $52.5 million annual average salary.
That is not what happened.
20-YARD RETURN ON THE PICK 😮💨 @ErnestJones
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) October 4, 2026
Welcome to The Dark Side.
📺: @NFLonCBS pic.twitter.com/eOq36faKS2
Through four games, Herbert has four touchdown passes, four fumbles (though only one lost) and six interceptions. He's getting blitzed less than any other season in his career. He's facing pressure more than any other season in his career. He's a square peg thrust into McDaniel's offense that relies on quick throws and timing routes but lacks reliable targets -- with Ladd McConkey hurt, his top two targets have been Quentin Johnston (apparently regressing back to rookie frustrations) and Tre Harris.
This has been discombobulating, Herbert's on-target throw rate, per Pro Football Reference, doesn't even top 50 percent. The Chargers have scored only 67 points in four games, 29th-best in the NFL.
That would be a problem no matter what, but especially with a lagging defense. While Los Angeles ranks 10th when it comes to EPA allowed, Harbaugh's team drops to 24th when it comes to points given up, in part because an awful offense means opponents are starting drives on their own 39-yard line (the Chargers, for comparison, start an average drive at their own 26). Despite forcing five turnovers in Week 3 against the Buffalo Bills, LA still managed to cough up an early 10-0 lead.
With a brutal schedule ahead, things may get worse before they get better.
Will Harbaugh be fired with a sub-.500 record?
Harbaugh had gone 22-12 in the regular season coming into 2026. However, that record came with an 0-2 postseason mark that revolved around double-digit Wild Card losses in which his teams gained 468 total yards of offense. Despite paying Herbert like a franchise quarterback, pressure was mounting to turn him into someone capable of being a Super Bowl contender rather than a speed bump on another team's road to glory.
With a brutal schedule remaining, it's tough to find a path to nine wins after that 0-4 start. Harbaugh may be able to buy some grace by sacrificing McDaniel and pointing to the injuries that have kept his offense in neutral. What he may not be able to survive, however, is Herbert's sudden descent to a bottom-five starting quarterback. Firing a coach is easier than getting rid of a franchise QB who's contract means he'll be on the roster through at least 2027.
Seat temperature: Warm, and rising each week.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: How hot is Jim Harbaugh's seat after Chargers' 0-4 start?
