Regime change for the Chargers this year. Bringing in Jim Harbaugh was one of the biggest coaching signings of the year. He’s going to bring his brand of football to Los Angeles and instill a physicality that’s been missing from this team for awhile.

Remaking the roster has already started in earnest. Harbaugh shipped off the number one receiver and running back from last year. He brought in the running back by committee from Baltimore in Gus Edwards and JK Dobbins. Wide receiver is likely going to continue to be a problem this year unless one of the young guys steps up and proves he can be a number one guy.

The defense still has Mack and Bosa to terrorize quarterbacks. But overall the defense was lackluster last year. Giving up the 28th most total yards per game and 30th most passing yards.

Justin Herbert is going to need to step into the leadership role for this team. He’s been in the league long enough its time to prove he can be the franchise quarterback they expected him to be when he was drafted. Being able to elevate a mediocre receiving corps would be a nice first step. Harbaugh is going to have high expectations for Herbert, but he’s also going to provide the support he needs to be successful.

The culture change from Brandon Staley to Jim Harbaugh is going to be a challenge for some players. Harbaugh is known to really grind up his players. When he left San Francisco that was one of the complaints players had. He had simply pushed them so hard they stopped hearing the message. Harbaugh was successful in college because he was able to change out players every couple of years and the message never got stale. Is he going to be able to temper that energy now that he’s back in the NFL? How many of the veterans are going to accept that kind of coaching?

The roster churn might be just starting in Los Angeles.

Is it me or is still weird to call them Los Angeles and instead of San Diego?

2024 Prediction: 8-9 3rd AFC West

*UPDATE*

Since writing this article, news has come out about a significant foot injury to quarterback Justin Herbert. If Herbert is going to miss time during the regular season, this team will struggle on offense and I’d expect that record to fall by 2-3 games.