Chargers Declared Losers of Schedule, But Jim Harbaugh Builds for Brutal Stretches

The Chargers are built for what seems like a historically unfair stretch of games.

Jim Harbaugh | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Considering the Los Angeles Chargers play in the competitive AFC West headlined by a powerhouse Kansas City Chiefs team, never mind a strong overall AFC, Jim Harbaugh has done an impressive job over his first two years. 

Despite major roster churn to rebuild the program, the Chargers hit the playoffs in 2024, going 8-3 down the stretch before the postseason. Then, 11 wins last year and the playoffs again, nearly sweeping the AFC West, winning overseas and in primetime. 

On paper, the Chargers should be even better in 2026. They rebuilt the interior of Justin Herbert’s offensive line and brought on Mike McDaniel as coordinator to help the star quarterback push for even greater heights. 

It’s a little odd, then, to hear when onlookers are so down on their schedule prospects. 

NFL schedule losers include…Chargers?

Jim Harbaugh | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Look, the NFL schedule isn’t kind to the Chargers in some ways. 

After a cupcake start (home games against Arizona and Las Vegas), things quickly go the other direction in terms of difficulty: 

• Bills
• Seahawks
• Broncos
• Chiefs
• Rams
• Texans
• Ravens

This, understandably, has the Chargers listed as major schedule losers by the likes of CBS Sports’ Garrett Podell, among plenty of others. 

“Los Angeles could square off against the last four NFL MVPs in this span with matchups against Patrick Mahomes (2018 and 2022 NFL MVP), Lamar Jackson (2019 and 2023 NFL MVP), Josh Allen (2024 NFL MVP) and Matthew Stafford (2025 NFL MVP),” Podel wrote. “Three of the league's conference championship game participants from last season -- the Seahawks, Broncos and Rams -- are also represented in this seven-game stretch.”

No use in arguing against the difficulty of the stretch. 

But Harbaugh has built a powerhouse of his own. Elite quarterbacks are expected. They swept Patrick Mahomes last year. They beat Jalen Hurts and Dak Prescott. They’re accustomed to Bo Nix. They made Aaron Rodgers look 42 by holding him to 161 yards on 31 attempts. Etc. 

Unless the defense returning many pieces is suddenly stunningly inept under a new coordinator, there’s an expectation that they can play with any quarterback. And Herbert was keeping his team in games against elite passers while stuck in a bad offense for years. 

Now, Herbert’s got McDaniel and a host of talented weapons around him alongside the rebuilt line. If anything, the Chargers should be thankful they didn’t see this stretch in 2024 or 2025, because they're far better equipped to handle it now.

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