The Chargers came into the 2026 season with real buzz, but four weeks in, the picture has turned bleak fast. After a 30-23 loss at Seattle dropped Los Angeles to 0-4, the AFC playoff chase is basically done. Only one team in league history has climbed out of an 0-4 hole to make the postseason: the 1992 Chargers, who finished 11-5 and won the AFC West.
This version of the Chargers doesn’t look anything like that group. They’ve been outscored by the Cardinals, Raiders, Bills and Seahawks by a combined 106-67, and they still haven’t scored more than 23 points or held an opponent under 24.
The schedule doesn’t offer much relief either, with games ahead against the Broncos, Chiefs, Rams, Texans, Ravens, Patriots and 49ers, plus the Raiders and Broncos again. The only sure break on the calendar is the Week 7 bye.
What’s especially jarring is how ordinary the problems look. This isn’t just a team getting bounced in one-score heartbreakers. The Chargers are leaking in all the basic places, and the biggest issue starts with Justin Herbert.
Herbert was supposed to take off with Mike McDaniel calling the offense after replacing Greg Roman. Instead, the quarterback entered Week 4 completing just 59.1 percent of his passes, averaging a poor 5.8 net yards per attempt and carrying a 3-touchdown, 4-interception line through three games.
His passer rating sat at 73.4. Against Seattle, he went 19-for-31 for 189 yards, 5.4 yards per attempt, a touchdown and two more interceptions for an 89.3 rating.
He was also sacked three times, pushing his season total to 12, or three per game.
Los Angeles has tried to keep the offense balanced. It came into Week 4 as a 54-46 passing team under McDaniel, and even while trailing heavily against Seattle, it still finished with 32 rushing attempts and 35 Herbert dropbacks.
The plan is clearly to protect Herbert and keep the offense from becoming one-dimensional. But getting picked off on his first throw against the Seahawks set the tone immediately.
The run game at least gave the Chargers something to hang onto. They piled up 147 rushing yards against Seattle, which should bump them up from No. 12 in the league on the ground.
The passing game, though, is sliding in the other direction. Herbert has struggled to push the ball downfield, Quentin Johnson has faded as a deep threat, and Tre Harris is still settling into that role.
Ladd McConkey’s connection with Herbert has been off, and McConkey went catch-less despite being active with a foot injury before leaving again. Oronde Gadsen II has not developed into the mismatch weapon the Chargers were hoping for at tight end, and the interior line has felt the loss of center Tyler Biadasz, who suffered a season-ending knee injury before Week 1.
That lack of rhythm shows up in the money situations, too. The Chargers entered Week 4 ranked No. 24 in third-down conversion rate at 35.1 percent and No. 19 in red-zone touchdown rate at 55.6 percent.
Against Seattle, they converted just 5 of 15 third downs. They were better near the goal line, going 2 for 3 in the red zone, but it still wasn’t enough.
Add in 16 penalties in the game, and the Chargers are now up to 38 on the season, the fourth-highest total in the league. The mistakes are piling up in the exact spots where Harbaugh teams are supposed to be cleaner.
The defense hasn’t held up its end either. Los Angeles came into Week 4 ranked No. 23 in total defense, No. 20 in scoring defense, No. 20 against the pass and No. 20 against the run.
The loss of Jesse Minter, now the Ravens’ head coach, has clearly mattered. Chris O’Leary is running similar 3-4 ideas, but the unit isn’t producing the same results.
Against Seattle, the Chargers matched the Seahawks with 266 yards of offense, which only made the defensive lapses stand out more.
Derwin James’ absence was another hit. The do-it-all safety missed the game with a hamstring injury, and that’s become a familiar kind of problem for this team.
Injuries are again stacking up around key players: James, McConkey, and offensive tackle Joe Alt, who was knocked out of the Seahawks game with a neck injury. The Chargers are also thin at tight end with David Njoku and Charlie Kolar hurt, while depth at defensive tackle and wide receiver has taken hits.
Khalil Mack, now 35, is showing wear. Donte Jackson always seems to be fighting something just to stay on the field.
None of that fully excuses how flat this team has looked. The Chargers have become predictable and mistake-prone, which is a strange place for a Harbaugh team to be.
In the AFC West, the gap is already real: the Chiefs are 4-0, the Raiders are 3-1 and the Broncos are 2-2. Los Angeles is two games behind third place, has already lost to Las Vegas once, and still has Kansas City and Denver left on the slate.
There’s no miracle path here, and the schedule makes that plain. Still, nobody expected a Harbaugh team to look this bad this quickly. Right now, the Chargers are giving every sign that the only way out is through the pain.
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