Chargers provide glimpse of what’s to come under OC Mike McDaniel

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INGLEWOOD, CA – Preseason often isn’t a precursor of what’s to come during the regular season. For the Los Angeles Chargers offense, they hope it’s not.

The Chargers first-team offense was stuck in neutral for its first two offensive series of the preseason.

Next the first-team unit went three-and-out against the San Francisco 49ers last week before they were subbed out. The unit got off to an even worse start in a 20-18 preseason loss on Thursday, Aug. 28, against its stadium-mate, the Los Angeles Rams.

Quarberback Justin Herbert botched a shotgun snap facing second-and-1 on his second play of the day. It was recovered by Rams undrafted rookie safety Nick Andersen.

Perhaps most alarming, the turnover came against a Rams defense made up of reserves and players battling for roster spots. Not exactly the rousing start for new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel, the ex-Miami Dolphins head coach who was a hot commodity during the offseason’s coaching hiring cycle.

But the Chargers' first-team offense made some amends against the Rams. On the second play of the second series, Herbert tossed a perfect pass to Quentin Johnston that hit the wide receiver in stride for a 65-yard touchdown.

According to Next Gen Stats, the football traveled an air distance of 57.6 yards. The touchdown represented the Chargers’ first-team offense’s lone touchdown of the preseason as the starters checked out after the explosive play.

“I think it's always about conviction. When you get into this offense, you have these new techniques you've been working on for how long against our defense," Chargers fullback Alec Ingold, who played under McDaniel for four seasons with the Dolphins, told USA TODAY Sports. "You want to get out and you want to be perfect. You want to you want to do it to the best of your ability.

"I think guys care, but eventually it's a game too. I think that the response that Justin had and (Quentin) had is exactly what you can expect to see. It's not always going to be perfect, but the response to it and being able to stick to it and trust it, we'll get those explosive plays and we'll get stuff ironed out.”

A pre-snap motion by tight end David Njoku followed by a designed route concept fooled the Rams defense and left Johnston streaking down the middle of the field open. It was the type of play architecture that’s earned McDaniel a reputation as an offensive guru and the Chargers’ most significant offseason acquisition.

“Probably the most exciting thing is hiring Mike McDaniel,” Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz said during the CBS Los Angeles broadcast. “He was the white whale out there in terms of offensive coordinators. To get him, it’s been awesome.”

McDaniel was the mastermind behind a Dolphins club that led the NFL in total offense in 2023 and helped quarterback Tua Tagovailoa finish with an NFL-high 4,624 passing yards before things went south the past two seasons. The Chargers are hopeful McDaniel can upgrade a Chargers offense that finished 12th in rushing yards per game, 18th in passing yards per contest and 29th in red zone efficiency a year ago.

Was Johnston’s long touchdown reception a glimpse of what the Chargers offense can be under the new offensive coordinator? The players believe so.

“You got a little taste of it when (Quentin) hit the big shot (Thursday),” Chargers wide receiver Ladd McConkey said.

Follow USA TODAY Sports' Tyler Dragon on X @TheTylerDragon.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chargers provide glimpse of what’s to come under OC Mike McDaniel

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