Harbaugh: Winless Chargers to stick with McDaniel as offensive playcaller

Embattled offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel will continue as the Los Angeles Chargers' playcaller, coach Jim Harbaugh announced Wednesday.

Harbaugh made the decision after the organization's self-scouting over their bye week.

Before their Week 7 bye, the Chargers scored a season-low six points in a Week 6 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chargers managed just 259 total yards and lowered their league-worst points-per-game average to 15.0 in the 22-6 loss, which dropped them to 0-6 on the season. They are the league's last winless team this season.

McDaniel, who was fired in January after four seasons as the head coach of the Miami Dolphins, joined the Chargers this offseason to jump start a Chargers offense that had scored only one touchdown over two playoff losses under Harbaugh.

McDaniel said his goal was to help Justin Herbert, who he called as talented a quarterback as he had ever been around, "own" the position.

That process began with Herbert changing his shotgun stance over the offseason, moving his left foot in front of his right. It's a change McDaniel has made with other quarterbacks, most recently with Tua Tagovailoa in Miami, who had his only Pro Bowl in Year 2 under McDaniel. Herbert took days off from throwing at practice, instead practicing footwork while going through a throwing motion with a green water ball while McDaniel watched closely.

Instead, the Chargers offense and Herbert have never looked worse. He's thrown interceptions directly to defenders: to Buffalo Bills safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson in Week 3, then two picks to Seattle Seahawks linebacker Drake Thomas and linebacker Ernest Jones IV in Week 4. He has looked like a shell of the player who many consider to be among the league's top quarterbacks, as the Chargers piled up losses.

Herbert is tied for the NFL lead with eight interceptions this season.

McDaniel arrived in Los Angeles as one of the most respected offensive playcallers in the NFL, responsible for some of the greatest offenses in league history. In 2023, his Dolphins beat the Denver Broncos 70-20 with 700-plus yards of offense in a game and tied the record for points scored in a game.