Jim Harbaugh reflected on a second consecutive wild-card playoff disappointment on Jan. 15.
The Los Angeles Chargers have only reached the end zone once in two postseason appearances under Harbaugh, the latest loss a 16-3 defeat to the New England Patriots. Harbaugh subsequently fired offensive coordinator Greg Roman and offensive line coach Mike Devlin on Jan. 13. The Chargers coach explained his decision to fire the two coaches at his end-of-year press conference two days later.
“A fresh start, a new direction,” Harbaugh told reporters. “Greg’s a great football mind, had a lot of success, and also a fresh start for him, fresh start for our team, for our offense, both are true.”
Harbaugh later addressed his choice to part ways with Devlin.
“The NFL is unforgiving, it’s unfair, it’s hard,” the Chargers coach said. “That’s the nature of the business. But what we feel like is a direction that’s going to make us better than we’re always striving for that. Whether that’s with players, coaches (and) myself included. It’s a results-oriented business.”
The Chargers scored a combined 15 points in two straight wild-card playoff losses, and were outscored 48-15 in the defeats. Chargers QB Justin Herbert averaged fewer than 234 passing yards the past two seasons under Roman. He never finished a season below 241 passing yards prior to Roman’s arrival.
The Chargers finished the regular season with an NFL-most 32 different offensive line combinations, according to Next Gen Stats. That churn was evident, as Herbert was pressured on an NFL-high 263 of his dropbacks, sacked a career-most 54 times and hit a career-high 74 times. The Chargers finished the regular season with the NFL’s worst pass block win rate and ranked 31st in run block win rate, per ESPN.
Harbaugh and general manager Joe Hortiz said they plan to cast a wide net in search for their next offensive coordinator. Harbaugh told reporters he hopes the next OC will take charge of the offense.
“A head coach of the offense,” Harbaugh said of what he’s seeking. “That person that teaches and installs, puts the players in the in the best position to be successful, and ultimately scores points, number one.”
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