The Chargers are trying to find their sea legs with their new offense.
More pre-snap motion. Unbalanced formations. A dizzying array of plays.
They unveiled the new scheme Sunday and mostly came away queasy, losing to the Arizona Cardinals 26-14 in what proved to be Jim Harbaugh’s first Week 1 defeat as an NFL head coach.
Arizona, meanwhile, attacked in waves — blocking a punt in the fourth quarter and taking over three yards from the end zone. The visitors scored two plays later, silencing the already-subdued SoFi Stadium crowd.
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Sam Farmer breaks down what went wrong for the Chargers in their 26-14 season-opening loss to the Arizona Cardinals at SoFi Stadium.
“Sloppy at times, too sloppy,” Harbaugh said. “That’s something we’ve got to get fixed.”
Put more bluntly by tight end Charlie Kolar: “Overall, offensively, was just a dog … performance.”
The Cardinals, who won just three games in 2025, picked up their first victory since Week 9 of last season and dominated time of possession, holding the ball more than 15 minutes longer than the home team.
“Our offense is over there [on the sideline] drinking water,” Chargers safety Derwin James Jr. said. “They’re hungry to get out there, bro. We’ve got to do a better job getting those three-and-outs and getting off the field.”
It was an inauspicious debut for new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel, who worked all offseason on getting the ball out of Justin Herbert’s hands faster, thus reducing the number of punishing hits to the franchise quarterback.
Indeed, Herbert seemed to absorb fewer hits than he did in a typical game last season, but he didn’t have a lot of places to go with the football. He completed 17 of 27 passes for 209 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He was sacked three times.
The first of those sacks came on a pivotal play in the second quarter. The Chargers, trailing by three, decided to go for it on fourth-and-goal from the three. Arizona defensive tackle Dante Stills shot up the middle and wrangled Herbert for a 13-yard loss.
To make matters worse for the Chargers, the Cardinals took over and used up the rest of the quarter with a field-goal drive.
Neither team punted in the first half, yet the Chargers came away with just seven points, in part because of that goal-line fiasco, and in part because of an Omarion Hampton fumble.
Herbert repeatedly connected with Ladd McConkey early in the game, and later found him for a touchdown, but that option disappeared near the end of the third quarter when the standout receiver suffered a chest injury while leaping to make a catch. McConkey lay on the turf for several moments while he was examined by Chargers medical staff.
A hamstring injury to KeAndre Lambert-Smith further winnowed the Chargers’ receiving options.
Harbaugh had tied an NFL record by winning each of his six Week 1 games as a head coach, the first four with the San Francisco 49ers. That streak ended Sunday.
Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh, left, quarterback Justin Herbert and offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel leave the field after a 26-14 loss to the Cardinals at SoFi Stadium on Sunday.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
The Chargers had to be especially mindful this summer of what they put on tape. Because in an unusual twist, all three of their preseason opponents — Houston, San Francisco and the Rams — are teams they will face in the regular season. They didn’t want to tip their hand.
Still, their quarterback expected better.
“It’s on us to execute,” Herbert lamented. “We’ve run those plays since camp. We know them. And we just have to go out there and do what we’re capable of.”
This was a prime opportunity for the Chargers, as the Los Angeles spotlight was focused squarely on them after the Rams’ blowout loss to the 49ers, followed by the deflating news Sunday that Rams defensive end Myles Garrett — the most ballyhooed acquisition of the offseason — will miss at least four weeks with a knee injury.
But for the Bolts, favored by 9½ points, there would be no thunder stealing.
Journeyman quarterback Jacoby Brissett was steady and effective against the Chargers defense — now drawn up by new coordinator Chris O’Leary — rookie running back Jeremiyah Love scored the first touchdown of the season for Arizona, and tight end Trey McBride repeatedly found holes in the coverage, catching nine passes for 95 yards.
Chargers running back Omarion Hampton scores a touchdown in the first half against the Cardinals on Sunday.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Brissett completed 27 of 37 passes for 277 yards and a touchdown. He had the type of ending every quarterback savors: three consecutive kneeldowns to run out the clock.
The Cardinals scored more points Sunday than they did in all but three of their games last season.
Hampton, a first-round pick in 2025, had a pin-balling, nine-yard touchdown run early in the game but did little after that. He finished with 12 carries for 43 yards.
Cardinals kicker Chad Ryland had four field goals and might have had five had his 54-yard attempt in the first half not doinked off the right upright.
Now, Harbaugh is in the unfamiliar position of lifting his wobbly players off the canvas in Week 1.
“We understand we need to bounce back,” he said. “It’s called resolve.”
