The Los Angeles Chargers need to get something going on the offensive side of the ball, or their already spiraling season may simply be dead in the water. Against a tough Seattle Seahawks defense, there's simply no other option for Mike McDaniel other than to find a way to get the ball moving through the air.
Through three games, Los Angeles is the second worst team in EPA/play in the entire league. Their passing game sits slightly above that mark, at 24th in EPA per play, but simply nothing they've done on that side of the ball has been good or consistent enough to gain momentum and keep themselves afloat.
Now, with Ladd McConkey's status in question for their Week 4 matchup with the Seahawks, things appear especially dismal. If the Chargers don't have a receiver they can truly trust in the intermediate parts of the field, this game will be over before it even starts.
Even if McConkey plays, it seems like he'll be limited. At the end of the day, all eyes need to be on Tre' Harris if the Chargers want to resurrect their offense—as unfair of an expectation as that is to place on the second-year receiver.
The Chargers need Tre' Harris to identify himself as a true breakout candidate if they want to resurrect this offense
Perhaps 'ressurect' isn't the right word here, as we haven't seen any sort of consistent stretch of play for the Chargers under McDaniel. We've seen flashes of a cohesive and well-scripted passing game—such as on the first drive of the season—but even those moments have primarily operated through McConkey.
Sure, McConkey is clearly the receiver on the roster who's best suited for McDaniel's style of YAC-focused passing opportunities. But if there's not a complementary receiver who can both threaten the defense in the deeper parts of the field and also serve as a serious weapon underneath, defenses have too much room to simply collapse on McConkey.
Although McConkey practiced yesterday, it was in a limited fashion. He abstained from running any routes during the open part of the practice as a result of his fresh foot injury. It's safe to assume that, at the very least, he won't be operating at 100% in Week 4.
It might be time, moreover, to let go of any hope of Quentin Johnston being that piece. He's caught just six of his 17 targets this season for 64 yards, and he's been far too inconsistent and far too limited in the deep passing game to be considered a real threat at this point in the season. Harris, however, has shown some glimpses of activity.
He now has explosive plays in back-to-back games, leaking up the seam against the Las Vegas Raiders for a 53-yard catch and connecting with Justin Herbert on a cross-field throw or 29 yards against the Buffalo Bills. These bursts have certainly been promising signs for the explosive-play potential within McDaniel's offensive scheme, but the Chargers need to find a way to get Harris going more consistently on short and intermediate routes as well—especially if McConkey is out.
Harris doesn't have the catch-point consistency that McConkey does, but he has enough speed and agility as a route-runner to at least serve as a complementary threat in the short game.
To this point in the season, Harris has run more medium routes (between 10 and 19 yards) than he has short and behind-line-of-scrimmage routes combined. That's likely the right use for him when the offense is whole and working at full capacity.
But if Harris is going to take on a primary role in this offense, eating into some of McConkey's depleted target share and serving as a real timing-play threat, McDaniel is going to need to find a way to get him activated on quick slants and shorter routes. Perhaps that involves utilizing him more frequently in the slot, or perhaps pairing him with Johnston on the same side of the field to open up opportunities to confuse the defense.
We saw a glimpse of that in Week 3, as Harris saw a career-high seven targets over the course of the game. He played 11 snaps out of the slot and 16 out wide in that matchup.
No matter how McDaniel ultimately gets it done, Harris may very well be the piece that the Chargers offense rests upon in Week 4. If they're able to leverage his speed and agility in the open field, there may be some momentum to be gained there. If they can't (and McConkey is unable to go), this offense may simply be out of options.
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