Why Jim Harbaugh, Chargers consulted sleep experts before game vs. Chiefs

The Los Angeles Chargers have had some serious struggles on the East Coast and during those pesky 1 p.m. ET kickoffs over the years.

No wonder: West Coast teams tend to struggle when tasked with traveling across the country and working what is effectively a 10 a.m. game.

Who knew?

But the Chargers face a pretty unique challenge over the weekend: Going to Arrowhead Stadium for a date against the Kansas City Chiefs that is an early afternoon kickoff. Meaning it sits at the 1 p.m. ET slot.

As it turns out, Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh has had some pretty interesting ideas when it comes to fighting through the odd circumstances.

Jim Harbaugh sends Chargers to…sleep experts?

Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh — Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

Leave it to Jim Harbaugh to get this creative.

Speaking with reporters before the Week 15 clash with the Chiefs, Harbaugh revealed that the Chargers started practicing earlier than usual this week after a consultation with sleep experts at UCLA.

The Chargers and Harbaugh won’t have to deal with only the odd kickoff time despite not being that far from home. They’ll also have to combat the standard Arrowhead crowd.

Oh, and the freezing cold forecast.

But again, leave it to Harbaugh to throw out some funny quotes about this, too.

"I personally feel like an expert when it comes to dealing with cold weather," Harbaugh said. "You're young, your body is pumping warm, hot blood. Get your feet moving and keep them moving. When they come to the sideline, we'll have heated benches and those kinds of things. But your body is like a human hot tub. It keeps you warm."

It looks like the #Chargers are trying to shake out of the funk of these early window kickoffs when traveling East.
Jim Harbaugh says they practiced earlier to prepare and says "we're always looking for a suggestion that will help us, we thought that was a good one." pic.twitter.com/iVzIL3xdAA
— Thomas Martinez (@BoltsDraftTalk) December 12, 2025

Human hot tub or not, the Chargers have the ground game with Kimani Vidal and Omarion Hampton to run effectively and not ask too much of Justin Herbert, who will play nearly two weeks after surgery to fix a fracture in his non-throwing hand.

And if nothing else, the Chargers have the benefit of outside help when it comes to the prep for the game. Which, by the way, comes on a short week after they last played on Monday night and could knock the Chiefs from the playoffs.

To say there’s much going on around the latest Chargers vs. Chiefs classic would be an understatement, clearly.

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