A New Offensive Era, 4 Other Things to Know About Chargers vs. Cardinals

A year ago, the Los Angeles Chargers finished 11-6 for the second consecutive season. Once again, they were a playoff participant and for the second consecutive year, laid an egg in the wild card round.

It was a 2025 season that featured improvement despite the playoff disappointment. Quarterback Justin Herbert enjoyed his second Pro Bowl campaign despite taking a beating behind a problem-plagued offensive line. The Chargers’ defense took a few more steps forward.

Justin Herbert sacked — IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

It shapes up as an intriguing year for a team that has a new offensive (Mike McDaniel) and defensive (Chris O’Leary) coordinator. Speaking of new, the Arizona Cardinals are now under the guidance of head coach Mike LaFleur. He and the team look to pull off the surprise on Sunday at SoFi Stadium.

Chargers vs. Cardinals History

While the Bolts have more than doubled the Cardinals’ win total in this interconference series via an 11-5 record, Arizona got the last laugh in the most recent meeting. On a Monday night at Glendale in 2024 (Week 7), Cardinals’ kicker Chad Ryland connected on a 32-yard field goal on the final play of the game to give his team a 17-15 victory. This marks the third time in five seasons that these clubs will clash.

Chargers’ pass rush is experienced and deep

Only the Las Vegas Raiders gained fewer yards per game on the ground than the Cardinals this past season. Arizona managed a mere 93.1 yards per outing rushing, hence the decision to draft Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love third overall. But free-agent addition Tyler Allgeier may get the nod over Love (ankle).

Chargers’ GM Joe Hortiz used the 22nd overall pick in April on University of Miami edge Akheem Mesidor. He joins a front seven that includes ageless Khalil Mack, 2025 Pro Bowler Tuli Tuipulotu, and end Justin Eboigbe—who teamed for 24.5 QB traps in 2025. The Cards allowed a whopping 59 sacks this past season.

Keep an Eye on Cardinals’ TE Trey McBride

The 2022 second-round pick from Colorado State has been named to two straight Pro Bowls and earned First Team All-Pro honors in 2025. McBride comes off a monster season in which he snared 126 passes for 1,239 yards and 11 TDs. That impressive reception total is a single-season NFL record for a tight end.

This offseason, the team concentrated on fixing an offensive line plagued by injuries to tackles Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt in 2025, a season in which the Bolts’ front was ranked 30th by Pro Football Focus. The new faces inside include rookie center Jake Slaughter, and guards Kayode Awosika and Cole Strange.

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