The Los Angeles Chargers had high expectations going into the playoffs but fell flat on their face in the opening game of the postseason against the Houston Texans.

The Chargers offense was the main culprit for the team's disappointing performance and everyone was quick to point fingers at quarterback Justin Herbert, and rightfully so.

In the loss, Herbert threw more interceptions than he had during the entire 2024 regular season and the offense never seemed to find any rhythm outside of one big play by rookie wide receiver Ladd McConkey.

While the interceptions and offensive struggles fall on the shoulders of the young quarterback, Herbert doesn't deserve all of the blame and Saturday's game made it clear what the team's biggest need will be this offseason.

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Chargers Need To Find A Reliable Outside Pass Catcher

This shouldn't be a new take when it comes to the Chargers and everyone knew it was only a matter of time until this issue affected the team in a major way. And it finally did at the worst time for this team.

The Chargers desperately need to find a reliable weapon on the outside to fully take this offense to the next level. And I'm not suggesting the team should go back to being pass heavy and abandon the system they ran this season. They just need a considerable upgrade on the outside over what they currently have.

Going into this season, the Chargers knew it would be a challenge to replace Keenan Allen and Mike Williams in the wide receiver room. They found the replacement for Allen in the slot by drafting McConkey in the second-round, who went on to break all of Allen's rookie franchise records. To replace Williams, the team hoped that 2023 first-round pick Quentin Johnston would take a leap in Year 2.

Production-wise, he did. Johnston finished the season with 55 receptions for 711 yards and eight touchdowns while going for 100+ yards in two games this season, miles better than his rookie campaign.

However, some of the issues Johnston struggled with during his rookie season still popped up including his six total drops and issues with his route running. Both of those showed up big time in the Wild Card loss.

Johnston was officially credited with one drop and was targeted on one of Herbert's interceptions which was a jump ball. He also had multiple bad plays when it came to his routes and the situations on the field.

Quentin Johnston has 4 targets…

1 catch…

and the 1 catch was a turnover on downs because that was a terrible route run short of the sticks

absolutely disgusting

— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) January 11, 2025

But, Johnston isn't the only one to blame here. DJ Chark also struggled on the outside during Saturday's loss. Both players were exposed by the top two cornerbacks from Houston in Derek Stingley Jr. and Kamari Lassiter.

By the end of the game, Johnston and Chark combined for nine targets for a total of one reception by Chark for 10 yards. Against Stingley and Lassiter, the two were targeted eight times with the only reception coming against Stingley. Meanwhile, McConkey finished the game with 197 yards and a touchdown on 14 targets, but his game was clearly not enough.

After the loss, head coach Jim Harbaugh referred to some of the issues by the pass catchers as "uncharacteristic" and quarterback Justin Herbert specifically mentioned issues with the execution not being how they practiced.

Adding an upgrade to the room on the outside should be viewed as a clear need, now more than ever, and the Chargers will have a few options to find that upgrade.

Outside WR Targets This Offseason

The biggest name on the outside this offseason is going to be Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins, saying he hits the market. He would be exactly what the Chargers should go after to fill the need but will come with a steep price tag the Chargers might not be able to afford right now.

Veteran options such as Stefon Diggs or Amari Cooper could also fit what the team should be searching for at the position.

If those options prove to be too pricey for the Chargers' checkbook, there are also options to look into with the team's first-round selection such as Ole Miss' Tre Harris or Ohio State's Emeka Egbuka. Even though it seems like everyone is on board with the team selecting one of the top tight ends in the first round.

Nevertheless, there's plenty of options and avenues the Chargers could go in this offseason to add a more reliable threat to the offense to pair with McConkey in 2025.

Ladd McConkey makes NFL history despite Chargers’ bad loss to Texans in Wild Card Round

He continues to break records.