The Los Angeles Chargers confirmed Wednesday that offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel will continue calling plays after the team’s bye week, ending speculation that a change could come following a winless start.
Head coach Jim Harbaugh made the announcement after the organization spent the Week 7 break reviewing every part of the operation. The Chargers entered the bye at 0-6, the only remaining winless team in the NFL, and rank last in scoring at 15.0 points per game.
Harbaugh had left the door open for a possible shift in play-calling duties before the break.
“We’re going to look at everything. The job I’m doing, it starts with me. The plan is we’ll watch this and get with our offensive coaches. … [Offense] Needs to be addressed,” he said after the team’s most recent loss.
That review produced no change at the top of the offensive staff.
“We’re very confident in Mike and his talent, his work ethic and his ability,” Harbaugh said. “We continue to be.” He added that the staff examined “every stone, any part that we could look to better.”
The numbers illustrate why the offense drew scrutiny. Los Angeles has scored just 90 points through six games while averaging 287.2 yards per contest, which ranks 28th in the league. The unit has committed 15 turnovers, the most in the NFL, contributing to a minus-5 differential.
Quarterback Justin Herbert has thrown eight interceptions, tied for the league high, while completing 59.4 percent of his passes for 1,141 yards and five touchdowns with a 68.8 rating. His adjusted QBR sits near the bottom of the league.
Herbert defended his coordinator after the decision.
“It’s not his fault. It’s our fault as an offense. We have to do our job. The guys are open. Plays are being made. It’s on us to run, to block, to catch, to throw. It’s on us as an offense,” he said.
McDaniel joined the Chargers in January after the Miami Dolphins fired him following a 7-10 season in 2025. He had called plays throughout his four years as Miami’s head coach, something he had not done earlier in his career when he served as San Francisco’s offensive coordinator under Kyle Shanahan.
In his first two seasons with the Dolphins, McDaniel guided units that finished 11th and second in the NFL in points per game. The 2023 offense ranked among the most explosive in recent memory, averaging 29.2 points while leading the league in several efficiency categories.
Expectations were high when he arrived in Los Angeles to work with Herbert, whom the organization viewed as a franchise cornerstone capable of elevating under a new scheme. Instead, the offense has struggled to sustain drives and protect the ball.
The Chargers managed only six points and 259 total yards in their final game before the bye, a 22-6 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. That performance dropped their scoring average to the league’s lowest mark.
Harbaugh has never called plays himself and had not previously worked with McDaniel’s system. Passing game specialist Adam Gase, a former Dolphins head coach who also called plays in Miami, remains on the staff and has been mentioned in some circles as a possible alternative if results do not improve.
The Chargers face the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday in their first game since the bye. Los Angeles ranks near the bottom of the league in third-down conversion rate and yards per play, areas the coaching staff targeted during the self-scouting period.
McDaniel’s offense in Miami thrived on motion, spacing and explosive plays, particularly in 2023 when the Dolphins topped 700 yards in a single game. Replicating that production has proven difficult through the first six weeks in a new city with a different roster.
The decision keeps the play-calling structure intact for at least one more week as the Chargers seek their first victory of the season. With 15 giveaways already on the ledger, reducing turnovers will be a priority against a Rams defense that has limited scoring opportunities from opponents’ mistakes.
