Jim Harbaugh’s Chargers have gone from hopeful to hopeless in a hurry, and Week 4 only made the mess look bigger. Los Angeles fell 30-23 at Seattle to drop to 0-4, a start that all but slams the door on any real AFC playoff talk after two straight postseason trips.
The numbers around this team are brutal. The Chargers have been outscored by the Cardinals, Raiders, Bills and Seahawks by a combined 106-67.
They still haven’t topped 23 points in a game, and they haven’t held anyone under 24. That’s not a bad bounce here or there - that’s a team getting handled on both sides.
And the road ahead does them no favors. Next up is Denver, then a trip to Kansas City, then a bye, followed by games at the Rams, against the Texans and at the Ravens.
Later come the Patriots, 49ers, and rematches with the Raiders, Broncos and Chiefs. With no games left against current 0-4 teams Houston, Tampa Bay or Miami, even the schedule offers little relief beyond that Week 7 bye.
The biggest problem starts with Justin Herbert, who was supposed to thrive with Mike McDaniel taking over play-calling duties from Greg Roman. Instead, Herbert entered Week 4 completing 59.1 percent of his passes with a rough 5.8 average net yards per attempt. He had just 3 touchdowns and 4 interceptions in three games, along with a 73.4 passer rating.
Seattle didn’t change the story much. Herbert went 19 of 31 for 189 yards, a touchdown and two more interceptions, good for an 89.3 rating.
He was also sacked three times, pushing his season total to 12 - three per game. The first pass of the game was intercepted, and that set the tone fast.
Los Angeles has tried to keep things balanced, but it hasn’t been enough. The Chargers came into Week 4 as a 54-46 passing team under McDaniel, and even while trailing in Seattle they still ran it 32 times to Herbert’s 35 dropbacks. They managed 147 rushing yards against the Seahawks, but that only helps so much when the passing game keeps stalling.
The deeper issue is that Herbert isn’t getting much help. Quentin Johnson has become a non-factor downfield, Tre Harris is only now settling into the primary deep-threat role, and the connection with Ladd McConkey has been off.
McConkey was active despite a foot injury, went catch-less, and then exited again. Oronde Gadsen II has not developed into the kind of mismatch threat the Chargers need 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 all feeds into the offense’s ugly situational numbers. The Chargers are No. 24 in the league on third down at 35.1 percent, and No. 19 in red-zone touchdown rate at 55.6 percent.
In Seattle, they went just 5-for-15 on third down and 2-for-3 in the red zone. They also piled up 16 penalties, giving them 38 on the season, the fourth-highest total in the league.
The defense has not been a rescue act. Under Chris O'Leary, the Chargers went 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.
They now allow more than 27 points per game. Losing Jesse Minter, now the Ravens’ head coach, has clearly hurt, and O'Leary hasn’t gotten the same results with similar 3-4 concepts.
Against Seattle, both teams finished with 266 yards, but the Chargers still came up short because the mistakes and big plays kept stacking up.
Injuries are part of the picture, too, though they don’t explain everything. Derwin James missed the game with a hamstring injury.
McConkey aggravated his foot issue. Joe Alt was knocked out with a neck injury.
The Chargers are also thin at tight end with David Njoku and Charlie Kolar hurt, while the depth chart at defensive tackle and wide receiver has taken hits. Khalil Mack, now 35, is showing wear and age, and Donte Jackson is again fighting to stay on the field.
The AFC West standings only sharpen the sting. The Chiefs are 4-0, the Raiders are 3-1 and the Broncos are 2-2, leaving the Chargers two games behind third place already.
They’ve already lost to Las Vegas once, and defeats to Kansas City and Denver are coming. For a team that was expected to have some juice under Harbaugh, this has turned into something far uglier.
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