EL SEGUNDO — Among the takeaways from the Chargers’ new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel’s introductory news conference Tuesday was the idea of playing to a team’s strengths. So, what worked for Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa won’t necessarily work for Justin Herbert.
McDaniel said one of the top items on his to-do list was watching as much videotape of Herbert as possible. After facing Herbert while serving as head coach of the Miami Dolphins for four seasons, McDaniel believes he knows what Herbert’s strengths are, but he wants to be certain.
“You let the tape take you to your own conclusions,” said McDaniel, who was hired Monday.
McDaniel stressed the importance of “taking a little off (Herbert’s) plate,” which could mean playing a much faster tempo than the Chargers played under their previous offensive coordinator, Greg Roman, who was fired two days after their AFC wild-card loss Jan. 11 to the New England Patriots.
It also could mean shorter, quicker throws from Herbert to his receivers, relieving some of the pressure he endured while being sacked a career-high 54 times during the 2025 regular season. It could mean an improved ground game with new and improved schemes to free Omarion Hampton.
What’s more, it could mean better exploitation of opposing defenses than the Chargers accomplished in 2025 while ranking 20th in the NFL in points per game (20.6), 12th in net yards per game (333.8), 12th in net rushing yards per game (121.6) and 18th in net passing yards per game (212.2).
The return of tackles Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater from season-ending ankle and knee injuries, respectively, will no doubt help the Chargers’ offense in ways great and small for the 2026 season.
“It’s a reverse-engineered, problem-solving formula that you find ways to best suit some of the things (Herbert) does best as you’re learning a new offense,” McDaniel said. “It’s key to have a quarterback maintain confidence in his craft. You can find that by making sure that some of the best things that he’s had the most success with for years (and) making sure those are part of the install process.”
McDaniel, 42, oversaw a Dolphins offense that focused on Tagovailoa’s strengths in run-pass options, throwing defenses off balance as they tried to anticipate what was coming next. It worked wonders, capitalizing the Dolphins’ team speed, especially during the 2022 and ‘23 seasons.
The Dolphins led the NFL with an average of 401.3 net yards per game in 2023, winning 11 games and advancing to the playoffs for the second consecutive season in the McDaniel-Tagovailoa union. What’s more, Tagovailoa led the league with 4,624 yards passing during the ‘23 season.
This past season, Miami running back De’Von Achane was fifth in the league with 1,350 rushing yards. Kimani Vidal, who started the 2025 season as a backup, was the Chargers’ leading rusher with 643 yards. The Chargers haven’t had a 1,000-yard rusher since Melvin Gordon in 2017.
An improved ground game has been one of Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh’s priorities during his two seasons on the job. It hasn’t happened yet, though. Najee Harris, expected to be the Chargers’ top back this past season, suffered a season-ending Achilles tendon injury in Week 3.
Ankle injuries limited Hampton to 545 yards rushing in nine games.
“I know he likes to run the ball,” McDaniel said of Harbaugh. “That core foundational belief that football is inside out and prioritizing the line of scrimmage play and being able to win games when you have a lead with nine minutes to go, and you can keep the defense off the field.
“I think those types of things, that’s where the like-minded, Football 101 core values kind of overlap (with Harbaugh). I think Jim appreciates the evolution of the game and the different ways that you can try to attack how people are trying to defend you, and that’s always evolving.”
McDaniel said working alongside Harbaugh was one of the reasons he was attracted to the Chargers’ job. He interviewed with several teams for their vacant head coaching positions, but he withdrew his candidacy from them, including canceling an in-person interview Saturday with the Buffalo Bills.
“I think what was cool was Jim wasn’t trying to sell me anything, and I felt that,” McDaniel said. “I think he felt he was excited about the prospect, if and only if, it was a marriage that was consensual, you know, and not a hostage situation. So, I feel like us, organically talking about what we’re looking for and what was on the horizon, I think that was the biggest selling point. He wanted it to be a fit.”