Well, that was ugly. The LA Chargers sleptwalked into one of the easiest games on the team's entire schedule in Week 1, and the Arizona Cardinals didn't just win the game; they embarrassed the Chargers. Arizona controlled the tempo throughout and genuinely looked like the better football team.
This is concerning given the opposite ends of the spectrum the two teams are on. The Chargers are a team with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations, while many already penciled the Cardinals in as a contender for the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. After Sunday, it seems like both of those truths are actually a farce.
The most optimistic fans should look at the 2025 season as their source of a half-full glass. Las Vegas defeated New England in Week 1 before the two sides went complete opposite directions; the Raiders ended up with the worst record while the Patriots represented the AFC in the Super Bowl.
Could that happen with the Cardinals and Chargers? Sure. But after that showing, there are quite a few overreactions that I give a better shot of being true.
1. The Chargers defense is a shell of itself
One of the biggest questions I highlighted about the 2026 Chargers heading into Week 1 was the change at defensive coordinator. Fans were quick to jump on the Mike McDaniel bandwagon at offensive coordinator while completely sweeping Jesse Minter's departure under the rug.
Sure, Chris O'Leary coached under Minter and had a year of defensive play-calling experience under his belt in college. But he has never coordinated an NFL defense, and just because someone coached under a special talent does not mean they will also be a special talent.
The Chargers defense was bad on Sunday. O'Leary's unit cleaned it up some in the second half, but it was still an ugly showing against a Cardinals team full of miscast offensive weapons. Arizona picked up 393 yards of offense and averaged 5.5 yards per play. The Chargers allowed 390 yards of offense just once last season.
O'Leary can right the ship and turn this back into a serviceable defense. But the days of an elite Chargers defense may have left alongside Minter.
2. J.K. Scott and Ryan Ficken need to go
Realistically, the Chargers won't part ways with special teams coordinator Ryan Ficken after one game. Harbaugh had a chance to fire Ficken over the offseason and decided not to. He will let this play out for several weeks before there is a change.
That could come back to bite, though, as the Chargers' special teams turned in yet another clunker in Week 1. It wasn't just the porous returns on kickoffs and punts that were an issue, it was a fundamental breakdown on the most important punt of the game. Arizona's blocked punt in the second half essentially sealed the game.
The Chargers may not move on from Ficken this soon, but they should move on from Scott. Scott has struggled for years with the Chargers and made headlines in the preseason when he made a business decision not to tackle a returner on an eventual touchdown. A punter won't win you a Super Bowl, but it certainly can derail a Super Bowl run.
3. It took one game for the Chargers' offseason blunder to cost them
This shouldn't even count as an overreaction. It might not even be a just reaction. It might be an underreaction. The Chargers intentionally decided not to prioritize guard this offseason despite having $100 million in cap space and it took exactly one game for that decision to come back to bite.
Now, to be fair, the offensive line held up in pass protection much better than it did last season. You can thank the elite tackle duo and McDaniel's scheme for that one. The O-line struggled in blocking for the run, and, most importantly, turned in an awful rep in the most important moment.
Because the Chargers didn't invest much at guard, they are stuck with a platoon of Kayode Awosika and Trey Pipkins at left guard. And wouldn't you know it, Pipkins turned in the worst rep of the entire game in a key moment on fourth and goal to keep the Chargers from reaching paydirt. Classic Pipkins.
All offseason, we preached from the mountaintops that the Chargers would regret how they went about their business on the offensive line. The overall product was better, sure, but they should already regret it after one week.
4. Justin Herbert might just be a middle-of-the-road quarterback
The most controversial. I have received a lot of flak for criticizing Justin Herbert after his playoff performances in the past and Sunday's game didn't do anything to help his case. But to be fair, until he shows up in the postseason, the narrative will exist.
Justin Herbert is talented. There's no denying that. I still believe he has the most arm talent in the entire sport and that's what makes him such a polarizing quarterback. It's hard to see the throws he makes at times and think he is anything but an elite quarterback.
Being an elite quarterback is about more than just making one to two highlight-reel throws a game. It's about managing a game, knowing when to take shots, when to not take shots, and how to rally the troops when the going gets tough. Herbert certainly has done that at times, but he doesn't do it as often as the elite counterparts he is often compared to.
Herbert wasn't good in this game. Plain and simple. He had a great scripted first drive and made a super impressive throw to Ladd McConkey for the second touchdown of the game. Outside of that, he was bad.
He once again dealt with batted balls at the line because he releases everything so low with no touch on the ball, he missed Quentin Johnston on third down one play before the blocked punt, and then put the icing on the cake by throwing a deep ball to Derius Davis in double coverage that was intercepted.
Herbert completed 17 of 27 passes for 209 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He completed 14-24 passes for 149 yards after the opening drive. Those aren't elite quarterback numbers.
Herbert has never won a playoff game. He ranked 25th in EPA/play and 13th in QBR last season. Maybe, just maybe, he is more Jared Goff than he is Josh Allen.
5. The Chargers might only win six games
I'll keep this one short and sweet. The Chargers cannot afford to lose a game to the Cardinals when they have a schedule as hard as it is. If this version of the Chargers shows up every week, then this is a five-win team.
Thankfully, every week is different in the NFL. But just take a look at the next eight games. Even if we expect the Chargers to be better than they were on Sunday, it's hard to find more than three wins during this slate.
- Week 2: vs. Las Vegas Raiders
- Week 3: at Buffalo Bills
- Week 4: at Seattle Seahawks
- Week 5: vs. Denver Broncos
- Week 6: at Kansas City Chiefs
- Week 8: at Los Angeles Rams
- Week 9: vs. Houston Texans
- Week 10: at Baltimore Ravens
The schedule loosens up a bit after that stretch but even then, the Chargers still have to play the Patriots, Buccaneers and 49ers while playing the Chiefs and Broncos a second time. It hurts to say, but 6-11 is not out of the picture in the slightest.
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