Chargers Hit With Tough Questions After Jesse Minter’s Departure

Much of the focus around the Los Angeles Chargers this offseason so far has understandably focused on the offense.

No wonder. The franchise has very publicly failed superstar quarterback Justin Herbert, something Jim Harbaugh and Co. admitted by firing Greg Roman.

After a lengthy coaching search that commanded headlines, the Chargers settled on former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel. Attention-grabbing personality aside, McDaniel being one of the foremost innovative, league-altering offensive minds has a way of making a splash, too.

But there’s also that pesky item about the defense: The Chargers lost elite coordinator Jesse Minter, who now stands as head coach of the Baltimore Ravens.

And that’s producing plenty of questions.

Chargers’ outlook after Jesse Minter remains unstable

On paper, it was easy to handwave off the Chargers hiring Chris O’Leary as the next defensive coordinator.

O’Leary, after all, had worked under Minter and Harbaugh before departing for the 2025 season to act as coordinator at Western Michigan. The common thought process was that he would return and just keep running the same thing.

What an impressive career trajectory for new LA Chargers DC Chris O'Leary ‼️

2018-19 — Notre Dame analyst
2020 — Notre Dame GA
2021-23 — Notre Dame safeties coach
2024 — Chargers safeties coach
2025 — Western Michigan DC
2026 — Los Angeles Chargers DC pic.twitter.com/FUISUuFWfs
— Mike Singer (@MikeTSinger) January 29, 2026

But even Eric Smith of Chargers.com has fans asking him just how things might turn out.

Smith, though, said O’Leary’s opening comments in the role were very similar to Minter’s debut and that Chargers brass hopes the same stays true on the field, too:

“And based on what O'Leary said last week, it seems as if he's going to run the same scheme that Minter did. After all, O'Leary essentially ran a very similar version of the system in 2025 at Western Michigan.”

Harbaugh effectively sending off a coach to get coordinator experince at the college level isn't all that rare, but it's clearly the idea here. It helps that Minter has already been with the Chargers and specifically overseen key elements like Derwin James.

O’Leary could find himself at a disadvantage if the Chargers lose one of, if not both Khalil Mack and Odafe Oweh to free agency this offseason (or retirement, in the case of the former). Minter’s defenses made a habit of taking castoffs and mid-rounders and slotting them well into his scheme.

For O’Leary, the challenge will be pulling off similar magic, but perhaps with less.

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