Chargers News: Reporter Diagnoses Causes Behind LA's Lost 2023 Season

They are many.

At 5-10, your beleaguered 2023 Los Angeles Chargers have been officially eliminated from postseason contention this year. 

Despite expectations of a potentially deep playoff run behind the play of supersized star quarterback Justin Herbert, perennial Pro Bowl wide receiver Keenan Allen, and a Super Bowl-winning defensive coordinator shepherding the club's defense as its head coach, LA quickly proved that it was unworthy of any deep consideration at all.

The team's defense was once again one of the league's worst by multiple metrics, its offense sputtered, especially late in winnable games, and eventually things got so unbearably pathetic that team owner Dean Spanos canned head coach Brandon Staley and longtime general Tom Telesco in one fell swoop, after a hilariously bad 63-21 Week 15 loss to the similarly-bad Las Vegas Raiders.

In a new piece, Arjun Menon of PFF.com unpacks just what went wrong for your Los Angeles Chargers' 2023 NFL season. It's pretty depressing so, you know, prepare yourselves. TL;DR answer: a lot.

Yes, season-ending injuries to wide receiver Mike Williams, center Corey Linsley, defensive end Joey Bosa, and eventually Herbert himself didn't exactly break in their favor. Menon goes on to cite Telesco's choppy draft history and underwhelming free agency signings (that atrocious J.C. Jackson $82.5 million contract comes to mind), Brandon Staley's hilariously porous defense, the club's lackluster corps of running backs, and more.