The Los Angeles Chargers, for the most part, have done an excellent job reconstructing their roster this offseason.
They replaced the entirety of their offensive line, bringing in Tyler Biadasz and Cole Strange as starters and creating a competition at left guard between Trevor Penning and second-round draft pick Jake Slaughter. They filled some needs on defense through the draft as well, adding a ball-hawking safety in Genesis Smith and a run-stuffing nose tackle in Nick Barrett.
But their most notable additions have been their offensive skill weapons. They've added a speedy receiver in Brenen Thompson, a blocking tight end in Charlie Kolar, and a pair of tools out of the backfield in Keaton Mitchell and Alec Ingold. For Mike McDaniel's run-heavy offensive scheme, they couldn't have made many better additions.
And yet, in Sayre Bedinger's ranking of each team's best addition for NFL SpinZone, the Chargers' third-place finish isn't the result of any acquisition for their roster. It was their addition of McDaniel as offensive coordinator, which promises to overhaul the team schematically, that was identified as one of the best moves of the offseason.
It's a poignant reminder of what McDaniel's addition truly represents— hope for a realized version of the Los Angeles offense with Justin Herbert at the helm.
Mike McDaniel brings hope to the Chargers offense, not just a new scheme
Whatever you think about Greg Roman's failures and successes as Chargers offensive coordinator, it was clear there needed to be a change. Across their past two playoff appearances, Los Angeles scored a combined 15 points, most recently being held to just a field goal against the New England Patriots in their 2025 Wild Card Round matchup.
You can tie those failures back to a number of things, including the abysmal performance of the offensive line. But with a new roster and a new set of weapons at his disposal, the prevailing hope is that McDaniel will be able to rectify them.
Here's what Bedinger had to say about McDaniel's addition:
"The Chargers brought in McDaniel this offseason after he was let go by the Miami Dolphins, and why is that such a huge move? Well, there are few offensive coordinators in the NFL who are as elite as Mike McDaniel when it comes to scheming up a running game... Opening up the running game will make Herbert's life a lot easier, and the Chargers now have someone calling plays who has proven to get ridiculous production out of his offenses at his previous stops." Sayre Bedinger, NFL SpinZone
McDaniel certainly has lingering questions about his abilities as head coach. But as a pure offensive mind, there's no doubt he's one of the best in the league. Miami had the best offense in the NFL by total yards in his first year as head coach. Although talent acquisition slowed down after that, and the team's success reflected it, McDaniel's motion-heavy, outside-zone-dependent offense still held promise.
The Chargers need to take as much as possible off of Justin Herbert's plate in order to maximize his skill-set. Can he make the Superman-esque plays when called upon? Certainly. But Roman's offense asked him to step into that role too often.
Given the personnel they've added, McDaniel's hiring likely represents a long-term shift for Los Angeles schematically. But it's more than that.
It provides a reason to believe in the outlook for the Chargers offense again: hope that they can finally enter the realm of Super Bowl contention with one of the best quarterbacks in the league at their disposal.
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