Jim Harbaugh and the Los Angeles Chargers shocked the NFL world Sunday with an ugly loss to the Arizona Cardinals. It also led to plenty of fans losing in their season-long survivor pools in Week 1.
The expectation was that Justin Herbert and the offense would light up the Cardinals defense with new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel calling the plays. Instead, Herbert finished 17/27 for a meager 209 yards, a touchdown, and an interception.
The Chargers were sloppy throughout and it almost felt like a preseason game. That makes sense given how little the starters actually played this preseason, which was brought up by Harbaugh on Monday.
Jim Harbaugh Shares Big Regret
Harbaugh spoke with the media Monday and shared a regret following the dismal loss.
“Harbaugh said he saw a lot of preseason mistakes in yesterday’s loss and regrets not playing the starters more in the preseason,” ESPN’s Kris Rhim shared on X.
Herbert was on the field for a handful of plays in the preseason. He was not running the full McDaniel offense and was not facing any real pressure. That makes it a big jump to immediately go from that to a competitive NFL game without any true ramp-up period against opposing teams.
This has become a new trend in the NFL to avoid injuries in the preseason that could derail the entire season. The trade-off is potentially setting your team up to have a sloppy Week 1 outing.
Chargers Face Tough Road Ahead
The game against the Cardinals was supposed to represent an easy win for the Chargers before a tough upcoming schedule. Now the team is 0-1 and in danger of racking up more losses in quick succession.
Next week features a home game against the 1-0 Las Vegas Raiders. Kirk Cousins’ team is not considered a difficult opponent for the Chargers, but the same was just said about the Cardinals.
The next four games leading up to a Week 7 bye is what has fans concerned. The Chargers will play on the road against the Buffalo Bills, on the road against the Seattle Seahawks, at home against the Denver Broncos, and then on the road once again to take on the Kansas City Chiefs. Those four games all come against hopeful Super Bowl contenders at a time when the Chargers offense may still be figuring things out.
Chargers fans are now left hoping Week 1 served as an unofficial preseason game and that everyone is prepared to live up to the preseason hype in Week 2. A loss against the Raiders before the grueling upcoming slate may mean the Chargers’ postseason dreams are dashed before we even reach Halloween.
Chargers HC Jim Harbaugh Shares Major Regret After Week 1 Loss