The Chargers looked sharper in Seattle, but the result was the same: a 30-23 loss to the Seahawks on Sunday that left them still winless in ’26.
Justin Herbert earned a G in Nick Canepa’s grading, and the label was about toughness as much as anything. Herbert opened the game by sailing his first pass into a pick, then spent much of the afternoon trying to operate behind a line that never gave him much breathing room.
He threw another ugly interception late in the first half, and that one turned into an easy touchdown that pushed the score to 20-3 in a flag-filled stretch. Herbert also added a 26-yard run, warmed up late after taking beatings behind the line and with Ladd McConkey out, then coughed it up at the end.
The offense never found clean balance. Omarion Hampton was productive enough to draw a C, but he wasn’t featured often enough.
Kimani Vidal, who scored, got a little too much of the load. At receiver, McConkey had a drop on a route that was too short to matter before leaving with his bad foot.
Tre Harris at least showed up with a 26-yard catch, Oronde Gadsden made a remarkable four-yard red-zone grab, and Quentin Johnston finally contributed something.
The real damage came up front, where the offensive line drew an F and spent the game unraveling. Trevor Penning was beaten badly on a sack and had a massive jump before leaving with a head injury.
Kayode Awosika was already out with a fibula issue. Rashawn Slater added to the team’s NFL-leading false-start total, Joe Alt gave up an easy sack and then exited with a neck injury, and then the other tackle, Slater, got hurt.
The line, again, was shattered.
It wasn’t much prettier on the other side of the ball. The defensive line got an F after Justin Eboigbe committed one of the game’s worst mistakes, roughing the quarterback after a slide with two minutes left. Dalvin Tomlinson was ruled out with a hamstring injury, and Teair Tart jumped early before returning with a hold.
There were some bright spots at linebacker. Tuli Tuipulotu watched Herbert’s interception, then picked off Sam Darnold on Seattle’s first play.
He also had a tackle for loss and drew a huge leverage penalty on a missed field goal that led to a shorter kick and maybe the outcome. Khalil Mack picked up his third sack of the year, Daiyan Henley was active against the run, and Troy Dye added a late sack.
The secondary was another hit-and-miss unit, graded C-. Derwin James, the team’s best football player, was out with a hamstring injury, and Donte Jackson left with what, of course, was another hamstring issue.
Seattle’s Rashid Shaheed broke free for a 28-yard rushing touchdown after everyone got blocked, Tarheeb Still got beaten on a touchdown pass, and R.J. Mickens was flagged for a bogus chop block.
Special teams earned an F after Derius Davis muffed and lost an early punt at his own 23, setting up an immediate touchdown. Cameron Dicker, despite Canepa’s note that he has not been on his game, did make three field goals - from 40, 39 and 36 yards. Patrick Herbert, Justin’s brother, also held on a kickoff.
Jim Harbaugh’s coaching grade came in at an F, with Canepa pointing to a season that feels impossible to salvage. The Chargers keep dealing with a wrecked offensive line, a shredded roster, problems around Herbert, receivers who can’t separate and sloppy play across the board.
The one comfort, if there is one, is that this game came at sea level. Denver, Canepa noted, isn’t nearly as good there.
But even that wasn’t enough to hide the gap: the Seahawks were better than this team.
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