Even though the team took a step forward and made the playoffs this season (overcoming obstacle after obstacle to do so), the LA Chargers were still a struggle to watch at times in 2022. The main reason was the team's philosophy on offense as offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi could not maximize the fact that he had a humanoid quarterback in Justin Herbert.
That reared its ugly face in the Wild Card Round as the offense was unable to protect a 27-0 lead over the Jacksonville Jaguars. The turning point of the game was a miscommunicated end-around to Michael Bandy on third and one that gave Jacksonville a shot in the arm before half.
The only move the Bolts could make was to fire Lombardi and they quickly did that after the loss. Now, the Chargers have arguably the best coordinator opening in the entire sport and will be able to mill through the options to find an improvement.
Lombardi has to find his next team as well and even though the results in LA were not great, there is naturally going to be teams and fanbases who convince themselves that he can bring something to the table. The latest example of that for Lombardi is the Green Bay Packers.
Joe Lombardi is the grandson of legendary Packers coach Vince Lombardi. He played a large role in the development of Justin Herbert (63 TD, 9753 yds last 2 yrs) with the Chargers, and was let go as the scapegoat of their epic collapse vs Jacksonville. An alternative OC option
— IKE Packers Podcast (@IKE_Packers) January 17, 2023
Packers fans need to research Joe Lombardi's tenure with the Chargers more.
We say this as a warning to any Packers fans who might be reading this article: Joe Lombardi is not who this tweet says he is. This is optimistic thinking and Packers fans will learn the hard way that Lombardi is not someone who should be an offensive coordinator at the NFL level.
Does Lombardi still add value as a quarterbacks coach? Absolutely. He held that job for so long in New Orleans that it is impossible to think that he doesn't add some value. However, he has proven both in Los Angeles and previously in Detroit that his play-calling system and offensive philosophy is not what a team should want.
Lombardi did not play an "instrumental" role in developing Justin Herbert. Herbert was already fairly developed by the time Lombardi came to town and I would give more credit to Pep Hamilton than I would to Lombardi for Herbert's success.
And Lombardi was more than just a scapegoat for the collapse. While there is a scapegoat nature in the firing, anyone who watched the Chargers at all this season saw that this was an issue all season long. This was not a humming offense that had one bad game and suddenly Lombardi gets ousted.
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Maybe it would not be as big of a disaster in Green Bay with the team already having an offensive head coach that has the most control on that side of the ball. But take it from Chargers fans: the Packers have many options better than Joe Lombardi at offensive coordinator.