The Los Angeles Chargers sit at an early crossroads in the 2026 season.

Through two games, both sides of the football have struggled, but the long-term concerns are not evenly distributed. The offense has sputtered, and there are plenty of reasons for frustration, but there is also a clear path toward improvement.

The defense is a different story.

Los Angeles has struggled to cover, struggled to generate consistent pressure and struggled to replace what Jesse Minter brought to the defense. The transition to Chris O’Leary at defensive coordinator has raised legitimate questions, while the personnel on the back end and along the pass rush leave the Chargers with relatively few obvious answers.

That makes the defense the bigger concern when looking at the season as a whole.

The Offense Has a Path to Getting Better

There are certainly problems on offense. The Chargers haven’t played anywhere close to the level expected of a team built around Justin Herbert, and the consistency simply hasn’t been there.

But there are reasons to believe this unit can eventually turn things around.

For starters, Herbert has already proven himself as a high-level NFL quarterback. Mike McDaniel is an accomplished offensive mind capable of creating different ways to generate production. The Chargers also have two talented offensive tackles, while Ladd McConkey gives Herbert a legitimate weapon when healthy.

There are intriguing options at tight end as well, including David Njoku and Oronde Gadsden.

The pieces are there.

That doesn’t mean the offense is guaranteed to figure everything out, but there is a recognizable path toward improvement. Better protection, improved timing and chemistry, and more consistency in the passing game could dramatically change the way this offense looks over the next several weeks.

That’s why the offensive struggles are more frustrating than terrifying. The defense doesn’t offer the same level of optimism.

The Defense Is a Different Story

Defensively, the picture is much murkier.

Through two games, the Chargers have struggled to cover and have barely been able to generate consistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Cam Hart and Donte Jackson have not provided the Chargers with a particularly strong starting cornerback tandem, while the pass rush has been almost nonexistent.

The only full sack on the team so far belongs to Khalil Mack.

Mack is still capable of making an impact, but expecting him to carry the entire pass rush at this stage of his career is unrealistic. And that’s where the Chargers have a major problem.

When a defense can’t consistently cover and can’t consistently affect the quarterback, where exactly is the improvement supposed to come from?

O’Leary should become more comfortable in his role as the season progresses. Experience calling an NFL defense matters, and there will naturally be an adjustment period. But experience alone doesn’t fix personnel problems.

Losing Jesse Minter Was a Bigger Deal Than It Appeared

The Chargers’ transition from Jesse Minter to O’Leary may ultimately prove to be one of the defining storylines of the season.

Minter’s ability to maximize the talent on the Chargers’ roster was a major part of what made the defense successful. He consistently found ways to put players in advantageous positions, adjust to opponents and make the unit feel like more than the sum of its parts.

Replacing that isn’t as simple as installing a new defense.

There was an element of defensive alchemy to what Minter was able to accomplish, and expecting a new coordinator to immediately replicate it was always going to be a significant ask. Now the Chargers need to find out whether O’Leary can build something capable of approaching that standard.

The problem is that there aren’t many obvious shortcuts.

What Would Have to Happen?

There are certainly scenarios in which the Chargers’ defense improves.

Tuli Tuipulotu could develop into a consistent sack producer. Mack could turn back the clock and provide a significant number of pressures. Ahkeem Mesidor could get healthier and become a meaningful factor.

Any one of those developments would help. The problem is that Los Angeles may need several of them to happen simultaneously.

The Chargers are essentially asking a young pass rusher to take a significant step forward, hoping a veteran pass rusher can continue producing at a high level, waiting for a returning player to become healthy and expecting a questionable cornerback situation to stabilize.

That’s a lot of uncertainty. The offense doesn’t have the same problem.

Herbert and McDaniel have the track records to suggest they can eventually solve some of the offensive issues. There is enough talent around them, along with enough schematic flexibility, to believe the offense can find its footing.

The defense doesn’t have an equivalent path.

The Short-Term Problem vs. the Long-Term Problem

There is an important distinction between the Chargers’ short-term and long-term concerns. In September and October, the offense may actually be the more pressing problem because it simply isn’t where it needs to be right now.

The Chargers need to get the offense moving. They need to protect Herbert better, establish rhythm and become more consistent. But when you zoom out and ask which side of the ball is easier to fix, the answer changes.

The defense is the bigger long-term concern.

The hope is that O’Leary’s defense eventually develops into something that resembles what Minter built. But what Minter accomplished was difficult to replicate in the first place. It wasn’t simply the result of a particular scheme or a handful of players. His ability to maximize the personnel, adjust and consistently put the defense in advantageous situations was a major part of the unit’s identity.

The Chargers now have to prove they can replace that.

They have enough offensive talent to work through early-season growing pains. Herbert gives them a foundation, McDaniel gives them an offensive mind capable of making adjustments, and there are enough weapons to believe the unit can improve.

The defense is a much bigger question.

The Chargers’ season may ultimately come down to whether their defense can find answers with its current personnel and a new coordinator. If it can’t, the offense may not be good enough to compensate for the problems on the other side of the football.