At this point, we can come out and say it. Through two games, the Los Angeles Chargers' passing offense has looked downright gross.
There's been little access to any explosive-play potential outside of Ladd McConkey, and with the star receiver seeing relatively limited snaps in Week 2 as he dealt with a chest injury, the Chargers again struggled to get anything going against a sub-par secondary. Justin Herbert finished the day having completed 15 of his 27 passing attempts for 192 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. No player outside of Tre' Harris finished with more than 40 receiving yards, and all of those came for the second-year receiver on a singular explosive play.
Is that what anyone envisioned Mike McDaniel's offense would look like?
There's numerous places we can lay the blame for this, including at the feet of Justin Herbert. But the truth is that the every player along the offense needs to look better, and offer more production, if Los Angeles is going to turn this season around.
Quentin Johnston's lack of production through two games is, in many ways, simply an indicator of the ways in which the offense has fallen flat so far. But with their decision to pick up his fifth-year option this past offseason, Los Angeles is now set to owe the receiver $16.5 million in 2027.
If this offense is going to find its footing, they need him to justify that decision—and they need him to do it quickly.
Quentin Johnston needs to be a major component of this offense if the Chargers are going to turn their season around
Again, it's unfair to blame Johnston for the way the offense has looked so far. What it comes down to, at the end of the day, is a lack of execution at every level. Herbert has struggled to acclimate to the demands of McDaniel's quick-timing passing game, and the mistakes between the offensive line, the pass catchers, and even the backfield have all added up into a pair of unacceptable losses against inferior teams.
But through two games, Johnston has amassed just three receptions for 24 yards. No matter what portion of the blame you want to lay at the feet of the fourth-year receiver, that's not acceptable either.
This Los Angeles passing offense doesn't truly work unless they're able to identify at least one consistent deep threat. That player can then threaten opposing defenses in the deeper portions of the field, working on a variety of routes to not only open up explosive-play opportunities for the Chargers but also to clear space at the intermediate level for the YAC-centered passing plays McDaniel tends to seek out.
McConkey can be the key cog of the passing game as long as he's healthy. But Johnston needs to be, at the very least, a viable secondary playmaker from the X-receiver position if the Chargers are going to find their footing this season.
If it was simply an isolated poor start for Johnston, this would be less concerning. But we've seen time and time again throughout his career how inconsistent Johnston can be. He started last season with one of the hottest stretches of his career—posting 22 receptions for 337 yards and four touchdowns across his first four games—before disappearing almost entirely as injuries and offensive turmoil slowed his production. We've seen him have frustrating issues with drops, and we've seen him oscillate between a potential star for this offense and a complete non-factor.
If it's going to be worth paying Johnston the $16.5 million in the final year of his contract, McDaniel and Los Angeles are going to need to figure out how to file away those pitfalls in his game over the course of the season. But in a short-term sense, they need to get Johnston activated if this passing game is going to have any life against their tough string of opposing defenses in their upcoming matchups.
The Buffalo Bills look much improved this season in the secondary, and it's not truly necessary to discuss the threat that both the Seattle Seahawks and the Denver Broncos pose in that aspect of the game.
The Chargers, quite simply, can't enter the toughest stretch of their season with just one true receiving threat, and we need to see more from Johnston quickly if they're going to be able to address that issue.
Add us as a preferred source on Google