To keep tabs on the Las Vegas Raiders’ AFC West rivals during the offseason, Silver and Black Pride has reached out to writers from SB Nation’s other sites within the division. First up are the Los Angeles Chargers, and Michael Peterson from our frenemies at Bolts from the Blue was kind enough to answer a few questions about the Chargers’ offseason for Raider Nation.
Q: It was somewhat surprising that John Harbaugh fired his long-time friend and offensive coordinator Greg Roman to begin this offseason. What led to that decision, and what changes do you expect to see with Mike McDaniel taking over?
A: Jim Harbaugh had no choice but to part ways with Greg Roman after yet another disastrous offensive performance during the Chargers’ wild-card loss to the Patriots. After two playoff games and a total of 15 points scored between the two, it was blatantly obvious that something was not working and friendship could not be a reason to potentially further squander the prime of Justin Herbert’s career.
As for what I expect in the way of changes going forward, Mike McDaniel already told members of the Chargers media that his plan will be to make the job of his quarterback as easy as possible. The biggest highlight of McDaniels’ early pressers is that he specifically mentioned being able to scheme “layups” for his quarterback, which is something that seemed like an impossibility with Roman. Nothing came easy for Herbert in 2025 with his protection issues, but Roman’s inability to make Herbert’s life easier was an egregious situation.
When people think of the McDaniels offense, they probably think about the explosive passing attack that came with Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. The thing is, McDaniel is actually very, very good at scheming up the run game. This is likely one of the most underrated assets that he’s bringing to the Chargers. It fits exactly what Harbaugh wants to do and how he wants to win football games. I couldn’t be more excited about this hire.
Q: Justin Herbert notably took a beating this past season behind the Chargers’ shaky offensive line. How do you think they will address the offensive line in the offseason: free agency, the draft or both? Are there any specific linemen that you think they’ll go after?
A: If the Chargers are going to take the need to improve their offensive line as seriously as they should, they will leave no stone unturned in the quest to give Herbert the protection he deserves. Now it doesn’t have to be the absolute best protection in the world, but it’s got to be a hell of a lot better than it was in 2025.
The Bolts should be all-in on a potential signing of center Tyler Linderbaum if he does not get retained by the Ravens. If that does not happen, there’s a good group of centers in this year’s draft that could be had on day two and even on day three.
One of the biggest names that is continuously being mocked to the Chargers in the first round is Penn State’s Vega Ioane, the class’ top offensive guard. That’s the type of player that Harbaugh dreams about and you’ve got to think he’s their top target on day one if he falls to No. 22. If the Chargers choose to address one of the guard spots in free agency (and Zion Johnson is not re-signed), I like David Edwards who has played his best football over the past two seasons.
Q: With former defensive coordinator Jesse Minter leaving for Baltimore and Los Angeles hiring Chris O’Leary as Minter’s replacement, how do you think that change will impact the Chargers’ defense moving forward and any personnel decisions this offseason?
A: The Chargers’ decision to hire Chris O’Leary as their next defensive coordinator honestly tells me that they are hoping to change as little as possible about their defense going forward without Minter. There were a lot of good available coaches on the hiring circuit and the team chose to, instead, hire back a guy who has previous experience with the team after just one year of calling defensive plays at any level. O’Leary was also a huge favorite inside the locker room. Players were incredibly happy to see that he was the hire, and that’s the type of energy you want to see from the decision.
Now the hope is that the Chargers are able to retain their top pending free agents, namely edge rusher Odafe Oweh, who experienced a resurgence under Minter last season. Will he go back to the Ravens to reunite with Minter, or will he remain in LA in hopes of continuing this hot streak he ended the season on? The Chargers sure need him, and as I mentioned earlier, nothing truly looks to be changing on defense next season.
Q: What’s the latest on Khalil Mack potentially retiring, and do you think he’ll be back in Los Angeles next season?
A: There has been no word on which way Khalil Mack is leaning at this point in the offseason. He’s expected to take his time to decide if it’s truly time to hang it all up or if he’ll chase that ever-elusive postseason victory (and to a larger extent, a Super Bowl victory).
As for whether Mack will return to Los Angeles for another year, I’m actually fairly unsure. Maybe if the Chargers had gotten any closer to winning in the postseason in 2025 after a first-round exit in 2024, but that wasn’t the case. It’s hard to think Mack’s confidence in the Chargers hasn’t wavered. I also question whether or not the Chargers will be able to afford both Mack and Oweh’s next contract while also still having the resources to sign other impact players they desperately need at several positions.
Q: Of the Chargers’ in-house free agents, if you had to pick two who you’d pound the table to re-sign and two you’d have no problem with letting walk, who would they be and why? The caveat here is that the players have to have been significant contributors from this past season.
A: Joining Oweh as the two players who absolutely need to be back in 2026, and this may come as a surprise, is linebacker/special-teamer Del’Shawn Phillips. Phillips was named a Second-Team All-Pro as a special teams contributor, and he’s one of the only standout players in that phase left on the Chargers after the team kept releasing the others during the season to make room for IR returnees. Every good-to-great team in the NFL has a strong special teams squad, and the Chargers cannot be any different. That’s why Phillips makes it here for me.
As for two that can absolutely walk, it’s offensive tackle Austin Deculus and tight end Tyler Conklin. Deculus was traded for just after Rashawn Slater’s injury, and he wound up being the worst offensive tackle in the league while he was starting for the Chargers. He ended the season allowing a team-high seven sacks and tied for the team-high with 37 pressures allowed. This is all while playing a little under 600 snaps on the season. That’s about half the total snaps possible if he had started all 17 games.
Conklin ended up being a wildly unsuccessful signing for a team that really needed a pass-catching tight end to pair with Will Dissly. After four consecutive seasons in which he hauled in at least 50 catches and recorded 440 or more receiving yards, Conklin finished the 2025 season with seven receptions for 101 yards. He was benched early in the season for drop issues and just flat-out being bad when it came to blocking anyone. He started just five games and was a healthy scratch in four contests after he was overtaken on the depth chart by rookie Oronde Gadsden II.
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