3 Chargers Schedule Factors That Will Actually Matter (and 2 That Won't)

The Chargers are busy preparing for Jim Harbaugh’s third season with the team. This year’s schedule looks pretty tricky, especially at the midway point.

May 11, 2026; El Segundo, CA, USA; Los Angeles Chargers owner Dean Spanos and coach Jim Harbaugh watch during offseason workouts at The Bolt. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

It’s a team that has reached the playoffs two consecutive years under its current head coach. It’s also a franchise that hasn’t won a postseason game since 2018.

The Los Angeles Chargers remain a very talented team that has finished 11-6 two straight years under sideline leader Jim Harbaugh. However, he hasn’t quite yet gotten his club over the playoff hump.

On Thursday, the NFL released its 272-game schedule. As of now, the Bolts have three prime time appearances during the second half of the season, and some potential land mines to deal with along the way. Here’s a look at three significant factors when it comes to the 17-game slate, and two other points that won’t add up to much.

Will: Hitting the road late in 2026

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When you play your six of your first 11 games at home, eventually your team will have to pay the piper. Since every AFC team plays nine road games in 2026, the Bolts will close out the season December and January with visits to Tampa, Las Vegas, Miami, and Denver—with home dates vs. the 49ers (Week 15) and Chiefs (Week 17). Including a pair of playoff losses at Houston and at New England, the Chargers own a so-so 11-8 road mark dating back to ‘24.

Won’t: Mike McDaniel reunion in South Florida won’t mean much

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This past season, the Chargers traveled to South Florida in Week 6 and wound up in a dogfight with the struggling ‘Fins. It took a 33-yard field goal by Cameron Dicker on the final play of the game to give Harbaugh’s club a 29-27 victory. Now the former Dolphins’ head coach returns to Miami as Bolts’ offensive coordinator. If you are thinking that gives either club and an advantage in this Week 16 contest, the Dolphins’ personnel has changed dramatically.

Will: A rough midseason stretch for the Bolts

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From Weeks 3-9, the team must navigate a six-game stretch in which the Chargers face five 2025 playoff teams. It begins with visits to Buffalo and Seattle, then a home tilt with the Broncos. A trip to Arrowhead Stadium in Week 6 is followed by the club’s off-week. The Bolts will be the visiting team at SoFi Stadium against the Rams, and then a home clash against the Texans. If that doesn’t get Harbaugh’s team primed for the postseason, nothing will.

Won’t: Closing out 2026 with two straight divisional games isn’t a problem

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The year before Harbaugh’s arrival in 2024, the Chargers finished 1-5 within the division. Their lone win vs. their AFC West rivals that season was a 24-17 victory over the Raiders in Week 4 at SoFi Stadium, and then the club lost its last five divisional contests. Under Harbaugh, the Bolts are a combined 9-3 vs. their division adversaries the past two seasons. Closing the season with games vs. the Chiefs and at Denver won’t phase this club, however…

Will: Déjà vu in the Mile High City

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For the second straight year, Harbaugh’s club will close out the regular season against the Broncos on the road. This past season, the rivals battled in Week 18 but Sean Payton’s club had already wrapped up the AFC West one week earlier and the Bolts rested Justin Herbert and others. It might be different this time around as the franchise looks to finished atop the division for the first time since winning the AFC West four consecutive years from 2006-09.