Why the Los Angeles Chargers Were Never True Contenders in 2025
- Tyler Lawrence
- 17 hours ago
- 5 min read
The 2025 NFL season saw the Los Angeles Chargers finish with an 11-6 record, securing a playoff spot as the No. 7 seed in the AFC and marking their second consecutive postseason appearance. They matched their win total from the previous year and even boasted a defense that ranked ninth in the league in points allowed at 340 total (20.0 per game). On paper, the Chargers had the pieces to compete: a franchise quarterback in Justin Herbert, emerging young talent on offense, and a stout defensive unit under head coach Jim Harbaugh and Defensive Coordinator Jesse Mentor (who will have head coach opportunities). However, beneath the surface, the team was plagued by critical flaws that ensured they were never legitimate Super Bowl contenders.
Chief among these were unforeseen offensive line issues that crippled their ability to protect Herbert and establish consistency. While the rushing game showed flashes of efficiency, the OL’s instability doomed the offense, and other hidden problems—like Special Teams regression, field position, and defensive errors—compounded the damage. Let’s break it down.
The Offensive Line: A Foundation Cracked by Injuries
Heading into 2025, the Chargers’ offensive line was expected to be a strength, bolstered by All-Pro left tackle Rashawn Slater and rookie standout Joe Alt, a first-round pick who quickly established himself as a reliable right tackle. But the unit unraveled early and often due to a barrage of injuries, turning what should have been an asset into the team’s Achilles’ heel.
The troubles started in training camp when Slater suffered a season-ending torn patellar tendon in his knee during a routine practice session in August. This devastating injury robbed the team of their blindside protector, forcing a reshuffle that exposed deeper vulnerabilities. Later in the season, Alt went down with a high-ankle fracture, further depleting the tackle positions. The Chargers resorted to a revolving door at tackle, dipping as deep as their seventh-string options and cycling through an astonishing 19 different offensive line combinations over the course of the year.
Veterans like Zion Johnson and Bradley Bozeman provided some stability in the interior from a health standpoint, logging significant snaps, but they failed to be difference makers along the interior and edges remained a mess. Bozeman in particular was re-signed during the offseason and graded as one of the worst centers in the NFL in back-to-back seasons. Jamaree Salyer, typically a guard, was shifted to left tackle late in the season in a desperate bid for quality play, and while he offered marginal improvement late in the season, it was too little, too late.
The Chargers prize offensive line signing, Mekhi Becton, was one of the worst graded guards in all of football as well. He was never healthy, consistently allowed pressures on Herbert, and is the worst signing by General Manager Joe Hortiz thus far. Hortiz swung on Becton late during free agency after all the quality guards were signed, and his roster spot next season is now in question.
These issues had a ripple effect on the entire offense. Quarterback Justin Herbert, despite his elite arm talent, faced relentless pressure—highlighted by games where he was pressured on over 68% of his dropbacks, one of the highest rates for any QB in the last decade according to Next Gen Stats. Overall, the Chargers ranked poorly in pass protection, with Herbert sacked frequently and forced into hurried throws that limited the passing game’s explosiveness.
The team finished with 3,727 passing yards (233 per game), a middling total that reflected the OL’s inability to give Herbert clean pockets. This pressure not only stifled Herbert’s production but also contributed to the offense’s 20th-ranked scoring output of 368 points.
Rushing Efficiency: Decent on Paper, Doomed in Practice
One might assume that a Harbaugh-coached team would lean heavily on the run to mask OL woes, but the Chargers’ ground game was a mixed bag that ultimately couldn’t compensate for the line’s deficiencies. The team rushed for 2,067 yards on 466 attempts, averaging a respectable 4.4 yards per carry—good for 13th in the NFL. Second year running back Kimani Vidal emerged as the lead back, appearing in 13 games and pacing the team in rushing, while Omarion Hampton contributed in nine contests before an ankle injury sidelined him intermittently. Even Herbert chipped in with scrambles, logging rushes in all 16 games he started.
However, these numbers mask the inefficiency caused by the OL’s instability. Early-down success rates were inconsistent, with the team struggling to generate yards before contact due to poor blocking at the point of attack. Explosive runs were rare, and stuff rates (negative-yardage plays) plagued drives, leading to too many third-and-long situations.
Opponents exploited this, stuffing the box and daring Herbert to beat them through the air— a tall order given the pressure he faced. While the 4.4 YPC looks solid league-wide, it ranked behind true contenders like the Buffalo Bills or San Francisco 49ers, who boasted more consistent ground attacks. The Chargers’ run game provided occasional relief but couldn’t sustain drives against elite defenses, as evidenced by their playoff loss to the New England Patriots in the Wild Card round, where they managed just 85 rushing yards.
Other Hidden Issues: Inconsistencies
Beyond the offensive line, several under-the-radar problems eroded the Chargers’ contender status. The special teams unit as a whole regressed, even with a phenomenal kicking game by Cameron Dicker. While Dicker was nearly automatic, the other 3 phases of special teams didn’t do their part. The kick return and punt return teams could not force better field position. Derius Davis struggled with injuries, and struggled to find seams to flip field position in returns, partially led by missed blocking assignments.
JK Scott had some bad kicks. While no punts were blocked, there were multiple instances where defenders were far too close to creating a really bad situation for the Chargers. Only 23 punts landed inside the 20, down from 28, 30, and 28 the previous three seasons. The Chargers allowed over 300 punt return yards for the first time in at least 4 seasons.
Offensively, sloppy execution—penalties, dropped passes, and play calls from coordinator Greg Roman—exacerbated the OL’s woes. Additionally, Herbert’s supporting cast, while improved with receivers Keenan Allen, Tre Harris, KeAndre Lambert-Smith, and Oronde Gadsden, lacked a true No. 1 threat. There was some redundancy with Ladd McConkey and Keenan Allen in the offense, and there was no consistent deep threat, not that Herbert had much time for deep developing routes. This cast was far better than the previous year, but there seemed to be a missing ingredient in the formula.
There were blown coverages in the deep part of the field this season. Alohi Gilman, (who was traded for Odafe Oweh at the trade deadline), and Elijah Molden were on the wrong end of most of these. The pass rush lacked juice at times, especially in weeks Khalil Mack missed. Mack still played as a quality run defender, but he wasn’t the same pass rusher after his injury. The defense was far from the main culprit, but there are areas that need to be further developed in the offseason.
These factors contributed to an uneven season: undefeated in the division up to Week-18 but prone to collapses, finishing 7-4 heading into the bye with glaring inconsistencies.
In the end, the Chargers’ 2025 campaign was a tale of what-ifs. They had the talent—Herbert’s resilience, a top-10 defense, and flashes of efficient rushing—but the offensive line’s unforeseen collapse, regression by a once dominant special teams combined with occasional defensive lapses and execution errors, ensured they were pretenders rather than contenders. As they head into 2026, addressing the offensive line as a whole will be priority No. 1 if they hope to elevate beyond back-to-back Wild Card exits.
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