After letting go of Joe Lombardi, the Chargers’ search for their new offensive coordinator is underway.
This will be one of the most polarizing positions, given the ability to work with one of the best young quarterbacks Justin Herbert and a solid supporting cast.
With that, Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez and Alex Katson take a crack at guessing who will be the new offensive play-caller in Los Angeles.
Gavino: Zac Robinson, Rams quarterbacks coach/passing game coordinator
Robinson started as an Oklahoma State star quarterback in 2007-09. After that, he bounced around the NFL for four years, mainly as a practice-squad quarterback, and never got into a game. Robinson then became a quarterback trainer in the Dallas area and also became an analyst for Pro Football Focus.
Sean McVay, who has hired various young, inexperienced coaches, brought in Robinson as assistant quarterbacks coach. Robinson moved to assistant wide receivers coach in 2020, then back to assistant quarterbacks coach in 2021. When Kevin O’Connell got the Vikings head coaching job, McVay hired Robinson as quarterback coach and pass-game coordinator, where he elevated Matt Stafford and helped Baker Mayfield find success in L.A upon becoming the starter.
Well, why Robinson? He has extensive experience working under McVay, the Kyle Shanahan disciple. In that system, running the ball is an integral element of the offense, and Robinson has a great grasp of the passing game and the mentorship of young quarterbacks as a former quarterback.
As a youthful head coach himself, Brandon Staley will not only covet a bright young offensive mind to pair with a young quarterback but having a great understanding of the McVay/Shanahan style of offense, the scheme he looks to shift to.
Alex: Mike LaFleur, former Jets offensive coordinator
LaFleur became available primarily for his perceived inability to develop a young quarterback, but your opinion of him likely comes down to your opinion of Zach Wilson’s talent level. LaFleur’s offense often produced with the Jets while playing Mike White and Joe Flacco at quarterback, two safer decision-makers. Justin Herbert doesn’t need to be developed the same way someone like Wilson does, and the success with other Jets QBs suggests that LaFleur’s scheme was not the broken aspect of New York’s offense.
LaFleur is also straight off the Shanahan tree, an offensive coaching tree that the Chargers are likely to pull from given Brandon Staley’s familiarity with its proponents. LaFleur has been an assistant for Kyle Shanahan at three different spots, rising from an offensive intern in Cleveland to offensive assistant in Atlanta to pass game coordinator in San Francisco before following former 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh to New York.
Under LaFleur’s guidance, the Jets produced 70 big plays, defined as a rush of 10+ yards or reception of 20+ yards, a figure towards the bottom of the league. However, it was still well above the Chargers, who had only 59, the third lowest in the NFL. Staley has said that generating more explosives will be a point of emphasis for the offense going forward.
Staley has also said that marrying the pass and run game will be important in finding their next offensive coordinator, and the Jets in 2022 were able to do that despite injuries on the offensive line and to standout rookie running back Breece Hall throughout the season. Of New York’s 70 big plays, 37 came on the ground, with 33 through the air. Only ten teams were more balanced than the Jets in that sense.
LaFleur also frequently used bootlegs during his time with the Jets, primarily to cut the field in half for his inexperienced quarterbacks and simplify things. But those bootlegs also worked because of the mobility of QBs like White and Wilson, which Justin Herbert also brings to the table. 2022 showed that Herbert is more than capable of getting on the move to make plays. Bootlegs for Herbert are not about simplifying things but more about utilizing Herbert’s mobility to get him in rhythm early in games.
