Chargers Hire Rams Defensive Coordinator Brandon Staley as New Coach

The Chargers have hired Rams defensive coordinator Brandon Staley as their next head coach, Los Angeles announced on Sunday night. 

Staley, who has been coaching for the last 14 years, has held positions for the Bears and Broncos before masterminding the No. 1 defense in the NFL in 2020. This will be his first head coaching position.

Staley, 38, was with the Rams for one year and has only been coaching in the NFL for the last three years after joining the Bears in 2017 from John Carroll University. 

The defensive-minded coach landed one of the most coveted coaching positions this offseason. Although the Chargers ended 2020 with a 7-9 record, there's much to look forward to with rookie quarterback Justin Herbert. 

Herbert, the presumptive offensive rookie of the year, threw for 4,336 yards and 31 touchdowns in his first year in the NFL and will have a bright future ahead of him in one of the bigger markets in the country. 

Staley will have his work cut out for him defensively, though. The Chargers had the No. 23 defense in the NFL and without the likes of Aaron Donald or Jalen Ramsey within his ranks, the first-time head coach will have plenty to prove.