When the Chargers decided to hire longtime Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh in his bid to return to the NFL, it was clear the franchise was hoping to move in a more serious direction to take them to a Lombardi trophy. Although that has long been the hope, most of their history with head coaches had not gone according to plan, pushing them further down the line of contention in a division most recently dominated by the Chiefs.
So when the opportunity to bring in a well-versed head coach who had reached the promised land in college football with the extensive knowledge of the NFL as well, there was no way the Chargers could pass.
Taking advantage of their window with Justin Herbert and the ever-changing landscape of the NFL was crucial, making the pairing of Harbaugh with the young quarterback that much more intriguing. And so far, that's exactly what it has been, despite not getting to the Super Bowl.
However, that plan is far from aborted and is still the primary goal. The problem is that analysts now believe the Chargers are among the most desperate teams to get a Championship, simply because of Harbaugh's arrival.
The Chargers should not be listed among the most desperate teams to win a Super Bowl when the Bills (and Bengals) exist
The idea that the Chargers need to win a championship sooner rather than later because they chose to hire Harbaugh is slightly outlandish but purely premature.
The ex-49ers head coach has only been in LA for two seasons, and it's unheard of for a coach to walk into a team, especially one that needs significant changes made to the roster, and win a Super Bowl in that time period. Labeling them as one of the most desperate in the league to accomplish that doesn't make a lot of sense.
But that's what Bleacher Report's Mitch Milani did with his list of the eight most desperate teams to win a Super Bowl, with the Bills leading the charge at number one. That makes a lot of sense, given how Tom Brady handed them the division in 2020, and they have yet to even make it to the championship game.
"The Harbaugh hype, the Herbert hype. It needs to be justified with a championship."
This argument might make sense in a few years, but after just two seasons of the Harbaugh and Herbert pairing? Not so much.
Making matters worse, they're in a division currently run by the Chiefs, who were vying for their third Lombardi in a row. That's not a task any team would hope to have to overcome on their path to winning a championship, and it's a far bigger barrier than any other team on the list will have to deal with in their hopes of getting to the Super Bowl.
Regardless, we have become too impatient with coaches and teams to win Super Bowls, and having the Chargers on this list of the most desperate feels far-fetched. Perhaps, if this conversation were being had in a few years, maybe even next year, sure. But not now.
They're in a good position to add another solid player to their roster through the draft and have a chance to reunite with one of Herbert's most trusted receivers in Keenan Allen, which could elevate the offense further. There's more work to do, but they're on their way; it might not happen this year, and it shouldn't necessarily be the expectation.