Admired fan-favorite OC option is officially a candidate for the Chargers
By Jason Reed
The LA Chargers are currently embarking on the quest to replace Joe Lombardi as the offensive coordinator. Lombardi was unable to maximize having Justin Herbert under center and the team's stagnant offense was a big reason for the blown Wild Card Round lead to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
There are several candidates who have already been interviewed, are planning to interview, or have been requested to interview thus far. The trend so far for Brandon Staley is finding someone from the Sean McVay coaching tree.
However, the Bolts are straying off that path a bit with the latest potential candidate who is also an adored fan-favorite option. NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reported on Tuesday that the Chargers requested to interview Buffalo Bills quarterbacks coach, Joe Brady.
The #Chargers have requested permission to interview #Bills QBs coach Joe Brady for their offensive coordinator job, sources say. Brady has multiple requests, though it’s unclear as of now which, if any, he’ll accept.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) January 24, 2023
Joe Brady has interviewed with the Chargers before.
This is not the first time that Brandon Staley has shown interest in Joe Brady to potentially be the team's offensive coordinator. The Chargers initially interviewed Brady back in 2021 when Staley was making hires to his staff, only to go with Joe Lombardi instead.
Brady was once one of the most talked-about young offensive minds in the entire sport. After serving as an offensive assistant on Sean Payton's staff, he became the pass game coordinator and WRs coach for the 2019 LSU Tigers that went on to win the National Championship with one of the best offenses in college football history.
That landed Brady an offensive coordinator job with the Carolina Panthers. That lasted less than one full season as it was clear that Brady and head coach Matt Rhule did not see eye-to-eye. Disagreeing with Matt Rhule might not be a bad thing, though, as he is now out of the league.
Brady rebounded in Buffalo as the quarterbacks coach this past season. Getting to work with another elite quarterback in Josh Allen is definitely experience the Chargers want an offensive coordinator to have. In fact, Brady has worked closely with two of the three quarterbacks who rank ahead of Herbert in the NFL hierarchy.
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It will be interesting to see if Brady accepts the interview and if there is any real traction towards him joining Staley's coaching staff.