Andy Reid and the Chiefs are once again forcing the rest of the AFC to chase them, while Jim Harbaugh and the Chargers are heading into their bye week with a mess to sort out.
Kansas City stayed perfect Sunday in Missouri with a 22-6 win over Los Angeles, pushing Reid’s team to 6-0. The Chargers fell to 0-6, and the gap between the two teams looked as wide as the score suggested.
Reid’s start is the easier story to explain. Kansas City came into the season with built-in answers, even with its quarterback returning from reconstructive knee surgery, an offseason trade that sent away an All-Pro cornerback for draft picks, and a back injury that sidelined the left tackle. Reid and general manager Brett Veach had stocked enough talent to absorb the blows.
They also made what the story calls the smartest move of the offseason by signing running back Kenneth Walker III, who has been a monster in this reworked offense. Walker is averaging more than 6 yards per carry and even broke loose for a 33-yard touchdown Sunday. On that play, guard Trey Smith flattened Khalil Mack to help spring him.
That kind of production has the Chiefs sitting alone atop the AFC race for the first-round playoff bye. Reid’s team has now opened 5-0 six times, a club that includes only George Halas and Paul Brown besides him.
The Chargers’ problems run much deeper, and much of it starts with how badly the season has gone for Harbaugh’s side. They have looked disjointed, disorganized and not physical. They’ve also lost twice as heavy favorites against rookie head coaches.
Injuries have made the climb tougher, but they do not explain everything. Harbaugh’s hire of offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel has been described as a complete bust, and the quarterback situation has worsened with it. Justin Herbert, once seen as a top-five or top-10 quarterback, is now described here as the NFL’s No. 1 enigma.
Herbert threw another puzzling interception Sunday, continuing a stretch in which he has turned the ball directly over to defenders once per game over the last four contests. TV analysts who are former NFL quarterbacks have blamed Herbert for the mistakes, saying he isn’t seeing what he should see or is forcing throws.
The bye week gives Harbaugh a chance to make a move, and the suggestion here is that he probably needs to fire McDaniel going into Monday’s break. That change would let a replacement get a head start, with former NFL coordinator and head coach Adam Gase already on the staff.
But the blame wouldn’t stop there. Harbaugh was the one who hired McDaniel, and he knew McDaniel would change Herbert’s footwork and build a quick-pass, horizontal attack around him. The article argues Harbaugh, as a former longtime NFL quarterback in his third year with Herbert, should have known better.
Dean and John Spanos paid top NFL money three winters ago because they wanted their version of Reid. Harbaugh did start well, going 11-6 in each of his first two seasons, and his second team beat Reid’s Chiefs twice. But Reid has since pulled back ahead, leaving Chargers fans in San Diego with another familiar frustration.
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Chargers Near A Breaking Point As Week 7 Decision Looms
The Chargers slow start has already pushed the conversation beyond simple corrections and into bigger-picture territory, with NFL Networks Ian Rapoport saying the team is still operating with confidence in coach Jim Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel. For now, the sense around the organization is that there is no appetite to make drastic moves, even as the record keeps the pressure on and the speculation around the roster keeps growing.
Rapoport also reported that teams have inquired about Khalil Mack, a sign that other clubs are watching closely as the Chargers head toward a Week 7 bye that could become a natural decision point. The idea of major roster turnover is still only a possibility, not a conclusion, but if the losing streak keeps stretching on, this is the stretch where the Chargers could be forced to decide whether to stay patient or start reshaping the roster. [Read more 🡒]