The LA Chargers have started the season with two close losses and the biggest narrative around the team is Brandon Staley's future as the head coach. Staley was already on thin ice after blowing a 27-0 lead in the AFC Wild Card Round and the Bolts have not done anything to help his case in 2023.
This is not a case of the Chargers losing two close games and fans getting a bit too impatient. This has been a defensive head coach, who was previously lauded as a defensive mastermind, getting exposed on the defensive side of the ball. The Chargers have allowed 63 points in two games this season and have allowed the fourth-most points in the NFL since Staley took over.
It is hard to be viewed positively as a defensive head coach when the defense is actively holding the rest of the team back. Fans aren't the only ones who are noticing, either, as a lot of media personalities have started questioning how much longer Staley has in LA.
That includes Fox Sports' Colin Cowherd, who has been very vocal about how bad this Chargers team has been under Staley in the past. When discussing if Staley is on the hot seat, Cowherd buried Staley with his most savage comparison yet.
“…it’s like Canadian Football defense.” Incredibly accurate description, tbh. pic.twitter.com/MzhlByFztm
— Ryan DePaul (@RyanDePaul) September 19, 2023
Colin Cowherd says the Chargers have a Canadian defense under Brandon Staley
With no disrespect to our brothers and sisters up north, there is no denying that the Canadian Football League is a notch below the National Football League in terms of talent. It is also fair to say that CFL defenses are much worse, because they are.
As sad as it is, Cowherd is not wrong. The Chargers defense has been atrocious thus far in the 2023 season. There is a difference between being bad and being so bad that it is embarrassing. The Chargers have crossed that embarrassment line.
Los Angeles allows more explosive plays than any other team in the league. After allowing a league-high 20 explosive plays in Week 1 (the next highest was 12), the Chargers came back and allowed another seven explosive plays in Week 2 (with two plays falling one yard short of being labeled as explosive).
There are times when the Chargers look like a college or high school team that is playing against another college or high school that is very obviously better. It hasn't even been competitive at times for the Chargers, who have let teams do whatever they want on the offensive side of the ball.
Something needs to change because it does not matter how special Justin Herbert is or how well the offense is playing under Kellen Moore. An NFL team cannot win with a CFL defense.