The Los Angeles Chargers have plenty of reason for optimism heading into 2026.
The introduction of Mike McDaniel's offensive scheme has the potential to maximize not only the talents of Justin Herbert but of their offensive playmakers as a whole. There's room for breakout seasons from virtually every pass-catcher on the Chargers offense. Combined with the addition of blocking talent in Charlie Kolar, Alec Ingold, and Tyler Biadasz, this Los Angeles team has an entirely different outlook than it did in 2025.
If new defensive coordinator Chris O'Leary is able to even approach the success Jesse Minter found with his zone-heavy scheme, this team will be one of the NFL's most dangerous from Week 1.
But in their pursuit of their first division title since 2009, it will take more than just optimism. A number of things stand in their way, and the Chargers will need to surpass every obstacle over the duration of this upcoming campaign if they want to finish on top of the incumbent champion Denver Broncos and the resurgent Kansas City Chiefs.
3 greatest obstacles on the Chargers' path to AFC West dominance
1. The uncertainties of the offensive line
The returns of Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater have already given the Chargers a massive leg up compared to where they were last season. Both Alt and Slater are Pro Bowl-caliber tackles. Even with the concerns surrounding Slater's return from a torn patellar tendon last offseason, their presence raises the ceiling of Los Angeles' protection immediately.
But it's impossible to ignore what happened last season. When Alt and Slater went down, the inconsistencies of the interior of the line were magnified. Mekhi Becton and Bradley Bozeman were among the worst at their respective positions in the entire league. Zion Johsnon, although he showed improvement in his fourth season in Los Angeles, wasn't that much better.
Tyler Biadasz should provide some stability at the center position, but the Chargers will depend on Cole Strange and some combination of Jake Slaughter, Trevor Penning, and Kayode Awosika to take their snaps at guard. Between those four linemen, there's not really a single sustained stretch of success at the NFL level.
McDaniel's scheme can work around deficits in guard play, but there's still a healthy enough degree of uncertainty here that it's difficult to fully buy into what the Chargers have on the interior.
2. The gauntlet of Weeks 3 through 10
A difficult schedule isn't a death sentence in the NFL. But it can certainly make things tough—especially for a team that will be acclimating to two new coordinators at the start of the season.
The Chargers' first two matchups are graciously simple: a pair of home games against the Arizona Cardinals and the Las Vegas Raiders. Both teams are set to be among the worst in the NFL this season, even if they find a path to competitiveness. But beyond that, the pressure ramps up pretty immediately.
Before their Week 7 bye, Los Angeles will face the Buffalo Bills, the Seattle Seahawks, the Denver Broncos, and the Kansas City Chiefs. If they haven't rounded into form by the latter two of those matchups, they could easily dig themselves an inescapable hole in their chase for a division title. After the bye, they'll face the Los Angeles Rams, Houston Texans, and Baltimore Ravens in quick succession.
If they can exit those first nine games with six wins and an intact offense, they'll be in excellent position to surpass the 11-win threshold they set over the past two seasons. If things go south, though, their path to a division title may be blocked off before we even truly enter the back half of the campaign.
3. The Broncos defense (and the Chiefs offense)
There's certainly room for regression from the Broncos in 2026. Denver won eight games by one score in 2025, and it was the constant dominance of their defense that propelled them to their impressive 14-win campaign. Vance Joseph is still in place as defensive coordinator after getting some head-coaching calls this offseason, though, and much of the talent required to implement his blitz-centric, man coverage-heavy scheme is still on the roster.
When it comes to the Chiefs, there's a much wider range of outcomes. Patrick Mahomes will be coming off of an ACL tear, and they'll be depending on their addition of Kenneth Walker III and their young receiving corps to help resuscitate their offensive attack. There's a real chance the dynasty in Kansas City has come to an end and we see another middling year out of them offensively even with Mahomes healthy.
But there's also a world where things come together under Andy Reid and Eric Bieniemy, and a breakout season for Xavier Worthy or Rashee Rice puts Kansas City back near the top of the league in explosive-play potential.
The path is open for the Chargers, but if these teams maintain (or return to) their dominance on these respective sides of the ball, it could quickly get a lot steeper.
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