Training camp is getting close, and with the 2026-27 NFL season looming, Albert Breer is already looking at the Los Angeles Chargers like a team that could shake up the Super Bowl picture.
That alone says plenty. The Chargers have spent years flirting with big expectations only to crash into disappointment, but Breer’s latest Sports Illustrated column makes clear he thinks this roster might be different.
He went as far as to ask, “Would I be nuts to pick the Chargers to go to the Super Bowl?” and then answered his own question by laying out why the idea is more than just hype.
“I know, I know. The Chargers have had these sorts of teams for a quarter century. Still, last year, they won 11 games, mostly without the two tackles that are the center of the team's identity; they're upgrading in a big way at tight end; they have young, rising talent at tailback and receiver; and the talent level on defense is really, really good.
“I think Justin Herbert, with all this around him, should be an MVP candidate,” wrote Breer. “And that leaves me with replacing Jesse Minter with Chris O'Leary as DC as the biggest question going into camp. Health-allowing, the Rams won't be the only team threatening to make Super Bowl LXI a home game.”
Breer’s case starts with what the Chargers already did last season. Jim Harbaugh’s team finished 11-6 in his second year as head coach, and Breer sees a roster that stacks up well against the rest of the league. He also points to the upgrades at tight end, the growth of young playmakers at tailback and receiver, and a defense he calls loaded with talent.
The biggest concern Breer singled out is the change at defensive coordinator, with Jesse Minter out and Chris O'Leary in. He did not frame health as a major obstacle in his column, even though injuries to the offensive line last season made life tough for Herbert.
The Chargers will get an early chance to back up the buzz when they open the season at home against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 1.
In Other News...
Chargers Suddenly Face A Massive Rashawn Slater Question In 2026
Rashawn Slater has already built the kind of rsum that usually settles a teams left tackle spot for years. Drafted 13th overall in 2021, he quickly developed into one of the Chargers most important players, earned Pro Bowl recognition and landed a major extension as the franchise bet on his long-term value.
Now the conversation has shifted from upside to availability, because Slaters recovery is the central 2026 question hanging over the offense. Los Angeles knows what he looks like when he is healthy and at his best, but it also knows how injuries have repeatedly interrupted that arc, from a torn bicep to the latest setback, and the Chargers are left waiting to see how much stability they can count on in front of their quarterback. [Read more 🡒]
Two Chargers Rookies Already Stand Out For All The Right Reasons
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For a team trying to keep adding young, inexpensive help around its core, those are the kinds of picks that make sense on paper and on the practice field. Thompson and Mesidor both land in situations where their specific skills line up with obvious needs, which is why there is already a real buzz around what each could become once the regular season starts to answer the harder question. [Read more 🡒]
Mike McDaniel Faces A Huge Justin Herbert Test In Los Angeles
Mike McDaniels first look at the Chargers offense comes with a different kind of challenge than the one he built in Miami. There is no Tyreek Hill-type engine to tilt the field on its own, so the emphasis has to fall on a broader structure: a committed run game, motion, play-action and enough balance to keep defenses from keying on one answer. The idea is less about recreating the Dolphins speed show than layering together a system that can move in more than one direction.
Justin Herbert changes the baseline for all of it. His arm talent, size and ability to throw off-platform give McDaniel more to work with than a coordinator usually gets, which is why this version of the offense can be more adaptable instead of just faster. The interesting part now is how far that flexibility can go if the Chargers get consistent work from the players around Herbert, because the scheme can be diverse only if the roles on the outside hold up. [Read more 🡒]