This season, at least in terms of playoff contention, is over for the Los Angeles Chargers. No team has ever started 0-5, let alone 0-6, and found their way into the postseason. And it's not as though this squad has truly had some close calls in their losses that would leave hope for their ability to suddenly turn things around post-bye.
This Chargers offense is dead in the water under Mike McDaniel. Sure, there's certainly room for some improvement—especially with some major tweaks on McDaniel's end—once Los Angeles exits the difficult portion of its slate.
But this is a team that needs to be planning for 2027 and beyond. And that needs to start at the trade deadline.
Joe Hortiz, though, continues to project the idea publicly that the Chargers will stand pat at the deadline. That sentiment was first reported by The Ringer's Tom Pelissero and was reflected again in a quick round-up that ESPN's Jeremy Fowler put out on X this morning:
Temperature check on a few teams entering trade deadline:
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) October 24, 2026
-Many in league getting impression Colts will wait 1-2 weeks before determining trade course. Rallying off a few wins could change perspective. But...they need picks, too.
-Bucs still in NFC South hunt, but a loss…
In all likelihood, it's simply a publicity thing that Hortiz hasn't yet started to give the impression Los Angeles is selling at the deadline. But no matter what, it's the right move for this team to at least get back some draft capital in exchange for assets that might be gone this offseason anyways.
It's certainly not time to tear down this whole roster, but the reality of the situation remains unchanged as the Chargers prepare to exit their bye week.
The Chargers need to do everything they can to salvage this season—and that includes being active at the trade deadline
It certainly seems like, as we round into the preparations for the Week 8 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams, McDaniel will be keeping his job for the foreseeable future. If he was going to be fired during the bye week, it likely would've happened on Monday or Tuesday. And if he was going to be fired at all in-season, it likely would've been this week.
Things simply can't get worse than they already have.
Sure, things can theoretically get better. The defense has performed well overall under first-time play caller Chris O'Leary, and sending off pieces like Khalil Mack, Donte Jackson, and even Dalvin Tomlinson would represent a hindrance to replicating that sort of production over the remainder of the season. The same goes for pieces like Kimani Vidal, David Njoku, and Quentin Johnston on the offensive side of the ball—at least in terms of turning things around in 2026.
It would be painful to watch the Charger somehow get worse once we pass the deadline. But it would be even more painful to see this team enter 2027 with many of the same issues that have defined this disastrous campaign.
Moving Mack for a fourth or fifth-round pick and trading some combination of Vidal, Mitchell, Jackson, and Denzel Perryman would not only give the Chargers additional roster flexibility moving forward but would also give them additional draft capital to work with this offseason. Of course, a sixth or seventh-round pick doesn't mean much in the grand scheme of things.
But if there's one thing Hortiz has consistently been good at it's making draft-day moves, leveraging those lower-round selections to move up and nab the prospects that fit the organization.
As Fowler says, there's still a long way to go between now and the trade deadline on Nov. 10. Expect the Chargers public stance to change between now and then.
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