Greg Roman's tenure as the LA Chargers' offensive coordinator is over after two seasons that yielded 15 total points in the NFL Playoffs. It was impossible for Roman to come back after a disastrous performance against the New England Patriots, signaling the start of a new era in Los Angeles.
The Chargers' offensive coordinator search is one of the most fascinating in the league. Quarterback Justin Herbert needs a talented play-caller to get the playoff monkey off his back and can't afford for his fifth NFL offensive coordinator to be like his fourth.
Jim Harbaugh and the Chargers will search far and wide for the right offensive coordinator for the job. But with how Harbaugh has operated in the past, it very well could end up being someone who he has ties to.
5 offensive coordinators the Chargers could hire with Jim Harbaugh ties:
David Shaw
Harbaugh's successor at Stanford, David Shaw coached under the LA Chargers head coach for several seasons before his long-lasting stint as the Cardinal head coach. That stint ended in 2024 with Shaw spending the 2025 season as the pass game coordinator of the Detroit Lions.
Shaw also has ties to the Chargers that other candidates do not have. He was born in San Diego and his father, Willie Shaw, was the defensive backs coach for the Bolts in their lone Super Bowl season.
Jake Peetz
Jake Peetz has the loosest connection to Harbaugh of anyone in this list but it's enough to include him, especially considering he checks a lot of boxes for the Chargers. Peetz has coached the last two seasons under Mike Macdonald, who previously coached under Harbaugh at Michigan before his stint under John Harbaugh in Baltimore.
Peetz is the perfect blend of being young and unproven, being connected, and having play-calling experience. He spent one season as the offensive coordinator of the LSU Tigers in 2021, and while it was uneventful, it gave him important play-calling experience that undoubtedly matters now.
Ronald Curry
Former Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Ronald Curry spent nearly a decade in the NFL before starting his coaching career. Harbaugh hired Curry as an offensive assistant in his last season in San Francisco before the entire staff departed when Harbaugh did.
Their paths very briefly crossed back in 2014, but Curry has built up an impressive resume since. Curry spent eight seasons on the New Orleans Saints' staff, where he learned under Sean Payton. This is an important wrinkle that works in his favor as Herbert is already familiar with this offense from his time under Joe Lombardi.
Curry has been Josh Allen's quarterbacks coach in Buffalo the last two seasons.
Mick Lombardi
The last thing Chargers fans want to see is another Lombardi calling the offense. However, if the Chargers want to adopt some of the Kyle Shanahan-style offense while staying connected to Harbaugh, Mick Lombardi is the guy.
Son of former NFL executive and current UNC executive Michael Lombardi, Lombardi is Kyle Shanahan's quarterbacks coach and is in his second season under the offensive genius. Lombardi's first coaching stint in the NFL was under Harbaugh where he started, ironically enough, as a defensive assistant. Prior to that, he was a scout for Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots.
Lombardi had multiple stops along the way between his two 49ers stints, including a two-year stint as the Las Vegas Raiders' offensive coordinator under Josh McDaniels. That may not have gone very well, but Lombardi at least has experience in the role.
Drew Terrell
Drew Terrell's roots with Jim Harbaugh go back to Ann Arbor, where Terrell was a graduate assistant on Harbaugh's staff for three years. Terrell parlayed that experience into an NFL opportunity, first getting a job with the Carolina Panthers.
Terrell has coached for the Panthers, Commanders, and Cardinals. He's spent the last three seasons as the passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach in Arizona.