Jim Harbaugh’s Hot Seat for Chargers Gets Important Detail via NFL Rumors

The Chargers are quiet at the bye, so what's the buzz about Jim Harbaugh's hot seat?

Jim Harbaugh | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Los Angeles Chargers hit the bye week widely expected to, if nothing else, fire offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel. 

Yet, to start the brief bye week work, McDaniel was right there alongside head coach Jim Harbaugh for the Chargers. Interviews didn’t hint at much, either. 

So, the question is pretty simple: Are the seats hot in Los Angeles at all after an 0-6 start? 

It shouldn’t even be a question, of course. But if the Chargers were going to make changes, one would’ve thought they would happen as early in the week as possible in order to use the full bye to get things changed smoothly. 

With nothing doing, the gaze for Chargers fans should probably turn toward the end of the season for changes. 

And indeed, NFL rumors and buzz have something to say on that topic. 

NFL rumors update Jim Harbaugh hot seat

Jim Harbaugh | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

There’s a common idea that Jim Harbaugh’s contract could prevent the Chargers from firing him early. As we broke down on Harbaugh’s contract, he signed a five-year, $80 million deal with a possible $16 million per-year number. 

Harbaugh’s contract runs through 2028, making it unlikely that the Chargers just pay him a smooth $16 million or more in 2027 and beyond to not coach the team. 

Unless…

According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, context around the Chargers is important: They very much care about their image. 

“But as a few industry sources pointed out, a bottom-of-the-league finish would force the Chargers to do some soul-searching, in part because the Chargers play home games in a stadium they don't own,” Fowler wrote. “Maintaining excitement is important in that regard.”

Chargers fans would probably like if social media and the “little brother” complex mattered less and that a firing would happen due to justified performance reasons. But hey, something is better than nothing here, right? 

The Chargers might be content to call this year a mulligan after Harbaugh’s strong first two years. But flopping this bad with no real end in sight in what was supposed to be a contention year is brutal. And they run the risk of wasting more of Justin Herbert’s prime by rerunning the same thing again in 2027, if not longer. 

At the bye, the Chargers are looking at 0-6 and, given the strength of the schedule, potentially 0-9 before things ease up a bit. If they’re 2-15 or 3-14 by the end of the year, there’s no rehabbing the beloved image. The fact folks around the NFL are already talking about this doesn’t paint Harbaugh’s future in the best of lights, at least. 

Sign Up For the Chargers Daily Digest - OnSI’s Free Los Angeles Chargers Newsletter