Takeaways from Chargers' end of year press conference yields hiring hopes for 2026

After a brutal loss to the New England Patriots in the Wildcard round of the 2025 NFL season playoffs, the Los Angeles Chargers look to change their direction as a franchise and finally make some real noise in the NFL postseason.

With that, major moves occurred. The biggest of which was the firing of offensive coordinator Greg Roman, a coach who took much of the blame for their offensive woes all season long. This firing sparked Chargers fans to instantly be back on board with the team, as this firing really gives hope in Head Coach Jim Harbaugh's ability to self-evaluate and value the health of the franchise rather than his personal relationships.

Biggest takeaways from the Chargers end of season press conference

Chargers' Offensive Coordinator wishlist

With the Chargers having an offensive coordinator vacancy, likely the biggest storyline of the off-season is who will they hire to assume the role in 2026? While the biggest fish is former Dolphins Head Coach Mike McDaniel, a name the Bolts have been connected to, there are a plethora of other candidates.

In the tea leaves given by Harbaugh on who they will consider, he mentioned, “A head coach of the offense. That person who teaches, installs, and puts the players in the best position to be successful. And ultimately, scores points No. 1.”

As what feels like a damning note, he added, “We owe that to our team.”

Harbaugh furthers his wishlist by adding he wants “ [a] physical run game, physical unit that is smart, plays tough, plays physical.”

Generally speaking, it seems that Harbaugh was ready for a change and excited to find someone who both fits his indentity as a physical, hard-nosed coach and someone who can really lead a unit to ultimately put up as many points as possible.

Chargers HC Jim Harbaugh on offensive system in search: “Wide net being cast.”

“We’re looking for the best one that has a track record, has proven success and can show us his vision for what our offense is going to look like and be like.”

“A lot of ways to skin a cat.”
— Alex Insdorf (@alexinsdorf99) January 15, 2026

A hint at the Chargers 2026 offensive line

The Chargers' offensive line has been a nightmare all season long, with superstar QB Justin Herbert getting hit at a league-high rate. An unacceptable amount considering how many sacks he avoided on his own. With that said, one of the press conference's major points of contention was the offensive line and how it can change going into 2026.

Pertaining to off-season splash signing, Mekhi Becton, Harbaugh mentioned, "I haven’t had a conversation with Mekhi... I would just say with all we are focusing on us individually as an organization looking for a head coach of the offense number one.” This, on its own, is not exactly damning, but with Harbaugh's usual need to uplift players publicly and give credit whenever possible, this is much more of a somber tone than usual. Many media analysts expect Becton to be cut from his contract and Harbaugh's tone could be an interesting piece of evidence to that expectation.

Moving on to everyone's favorite offensive lineman of the Chargers, Center Bradley Bozeman, Harbaugh and General Manager Joe Hortiz chose not to assess Bozeman's individual season, but gave a brief "PR" trained answer of: "We’re looking to upgrade in every department, position group." This lack of an answer is eerily similar to the words uttered before the recent offensive coordinator firing, yielding a hopeful change at the position.

The last spot on the offensive line mentioned in the press conference was in regard to left guard, Zion Johnson. The former first-round pick is eligible for an extension and is coming off what is regarded as his best season as an NFL pro. With that, Hortiz told the media he is “a player they’d love to have back.”

Major preparation for likely Chargers defensive shakeup

The final major takeaway is the unfortunate (very likely) departure of defensive coordinator Jesse Minter. His units have been mightily impressive with a general lack of star talent, allowing Minter to interview for many head coaching opportunities as one of the best candidates of the cycle.

With this to happen soon, Hortiz mentions, “I think you gotta look internally and externally.” Harbaugh further chimes in: “It’s not a question of if, it’s a question of when…We’ve been preparing for that.” Many have mentioned defensive backs coach Steve Clinkscale as the most likely candidate to replace Minter, due to his playcalling experience and great work with the Chargers DB room.

The Chargers are also set to lose LB coach Navarro Bowman, as Bowman is stepping away to focus on his son's athletic career.

Overall, this post-season press conference gave plenty of interesting notes heading into a crucial off-season for this Chargers staff. If they can deliver on the promises they have given from the start, Chargers fans will finally get what other fanbases have experienced before: playoff success.

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