The Los Angeles Chargers suffered a brutal Week 1 loss to the Arizona Cardinals, and the fallout was swift.

Over 30% of Circa Sports’ massive survivor pool in Las Vegas was eliminated because participants chose the Chargers to win. That’s 7,500 of 25,000 entries gone in one week. It was a painful reminder that Los Angeles remains a difficult team to trust, even with Justin Herbert and head coach Jim Harbaugh leading the way.

But there are real reasons to believe this Chargers offense will get it figured out.

The Chargers have earned skepticism. Every offseason brings hype, and every season seems to bring injuries and collapse.

The difference this time is that the roster isn’t dead yet. The offensive line, typically the chief culprit of Los Angeles looking like a disaster and Herbert having to play superhero, held up well against Arizona. The entire offensive line unit allowed no sacks. The actual linemen surrendered only 7 pressures.

Trey Pipkins allowed 1 sack and 1 pressure, but he sits at the bottom of the list for a reason. Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt, the Chargers’ starting tackle duo, combined for no sacks and just 2 pressures. Rookie Jake Slaughter stepped in at center, and Cole Strange, while the weak link with 5 pressures allowed, gave up no sacks.

If Strange is the weakest point on that offensive line and he’s not giving up sacks, Los Angeles can live with that.

There is reason for patience with offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel and his system. Continuity matters, and when a coaching staff hasn’t had time to build continuity, patience should follow. The Chargers have the talent, and they have the offensive mind in place to make it work. The system will get figured out.

The Ladd McConkey problem and early down struggles

That said, the Chargers have two glaring issues that need to be addressed quickly. The first is the Ladd McConkey problem.

Trevor Sikkema put out some numbers after the game that paint a staggering picture. With McConkey on the field and healthy, Herbert averaged 8.9 yards per pass attempt. Without McConkey available, that number cratered to 3.9 yards per pass.

The EPA splits were even more dramatic: 0.12 positive EPA per play with McConkey, compared to -0.61 EPA per play without him. That is an entirely different offense.

Los Angeles needs its other young pass catchers to step up. Tre Harris, Quentin Johnston, and Oronde Gadsden all have the talent to contribute in the passing game. Getting running back Omarion Hampton more involved as a receiver wouldn’t hurt either. The Chargers can’t be a one-man show at wide receiver.

The second issue is the early-down offense. Ben Solak highlighted a staggering number on X: the Chargers averaged 12.4 yards to go on third down against Arizona.

That figure tied the Jaguars’ Week 13 performance last season for the worst number of any game in the 2025 season. When you are going backwards 2.5 yards on first and second down, third-down situations become entirely inoperable.

Why this isn’t a reason to panic

Both of those problems feel fixable with the talent Los Angeles has on the roster. The offensive line held up. Herbert is still Herbert. The coaching staff has the right offensive mind in place.

The Chargers just need to get McConkey healthy, develop their secondary weapons, and stop putting themselves behind the chains on early downs. If those adjustments come together, this offense has the ceiling to look dramatically different in a hurry. Those are the two big things that have to get figured out before anyone should write off the Chargers.