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In the 2022 season, coach Brandon Staley guided a disappointing-plagued team to victories in four of its previous five games, setting up a Saturday night playoff matchup with the Jaguars. With just over four minutes left in the second quarter, the Chargers jumped out to a 27-0 lead, giving hope that the team’s late-season run would continue.
Doug Pederson, the head coach of the Jaguars, was no match for Staley, who outwitted the former Super Bowl victor and silenced the EverBank Stadium crowd. In the first half hour, Staley’s defense forced four turnovers, and he was the defensive play caller.
Then everything collapsed.
The offense in Los Angeles, led by quarterback Justin Herbert of the Pro Bowl, stagnated. Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars had no answers for Staley’s defense, which had been so opportunistic in the past. Staley could be heard yelling at linebackers coach Michael Wilhoite as the unit came apart.
Staley thought Wilhoite’s team had erred on a crucial Jacksonville play. According to team sources who witnessed the sideline exchange, Wilhoite countered that Staley had made a “dumbass playcall” and that the linebackers had performed their jobs.
The third-largest comeback in playoff history saw the Jaguars defeat the Chargers 31-30. It was just the most recent chapter in this Chargers franchise’s book of disappointments.
Part of what Staley said to the stunned and grieving team when he entered the locker room was, “Games like this happen in the NFL.” Some players were irritated by the message, particularly those who had succeeded in the postseason while playing for different teams. According to team sources, some felt that Staley was routinely abdicating responsibility for the collapse from the team and himself.
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A team source pointed to the screaming match with Wilhoite, who was fired, when describing how Staley’s lack of accountability and the moment he started losing players were evident in the Jacksonville game.
Dean Spanos, the team owner, said in March of last year, “Losing is terrible,” thinking back on that playoff game. “But the way you lose sometimes is even worse.”
In front of a prime-time television audience on “Thursday Night Football,” the Chargers suffered another historic defeat less than a year later. The team that was led by an interim coach, general manager, and fourth-round rookie quarterback was the Las Vegas Raiders, who were defeated 63–21. The Raiders were missing their All-Pro running back. The Chargers were without receiver Keenan Allen and quarterback Herbert, who was lost for the season due to a broken finger in his throwing hand.
There was a feeling of déjà vu when Staley faced the team in the Allegiant Stadium visitor’s locker room. The “games like these happen in the NFL” line was repeated by Staley, according to a team source, and he later repeated it to the media.
Staley was fired the following morning, along with general manager Tom Telesco, by the Spanos family, who would not spare him this time. Since firing Kevin Gilbride in 1998, this was the first time the team had fired a coach in the middle of the season.
One team source remarked, “There was a point with him where it just felt like words didn’t matter.”
A team that wavered between success and failure is reflected in Staley’s 500 record over three seasons.
He leaves behind an aging, star-studded roster that casts doubt on the team’s future, as well as a disjointed locker room that was partly caused by a coach who frequently got in the way of things.
“Essentially, when you fire a guy, you’re saying that there’s a guy out there right now who is going to set our team up with better chances to win the Super Bowl in their second or first year with a brand new team than Staley would in his third, fourth, or fifth year.” According to a team source,. “I’m not claiming it can’t be done. It just seems improbable to me. Here, there are additional problems.”
