Chargers ‘not panicking’ but look to be ‘crisper’ on offense

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — After four games where the Los Angeles Chargers (2-2) offense fluctuated between electric and dreadful, coach Jim Harbaugh and quarterback Justin Herbert acknowledged Wednesday that executing will be essential to a successful season.

Herbert said “no one is panicking,” and Harbaugh is determined to fix the Chargers’ offensive woes ahead of Sunday’s game against the Denver Broncos.

“What does getting better look like? For us, it’s getting crisper, sharper on offense,” Harbaugh said.

Through the first two weeks of the season, the Chargers were undefeated and executing how Harbaugh had said they would when he took the job in January: with a dominant physical rushing attack and a stingy defense.

The Chargers were putting teams away, scoring 16 points in the fourth quarter, which was sixth in the NFL over the first two weeks. But that quickly changed. The Chargers dropped two games and haven’t scored in the second half since Week 1.

Some of those struggles could be related to injuries.

Herbert has played through a high right ankle sprain he suffered in Week 2. Tackles Joe Alt (MCL sprain) and Rashawn Slater (pectoral) were hurt in the team’s Week 3 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers and didn’t play in Week 4 against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Outside linebacker Joey Bosa (hip) has played only 16 snaps since Week 2, and the NFL suspended safety Derwin James for the Chiefs game due to repeated violations of playing rules.

The positive for the Chargers is that they had a bye last week, giving all of the players time to recover. Slater and Alt practiced together for the first time since before their Week 3 injuries.

“I thought it came at the right time,” Herbert said of the bye.

Even with the injuries, the Chargers were in all those games until the fourth quarter, with the defense keeping them close, but the offense struggled to do its part.

“You have to be patient and understand that, hey, we’re going to get things right,” Herbert said. “We haven’t played the way we want to, but there’s never a time to panic. Panicking doesn’t help.

He continued: “We got the right guys out there. It’s a new offense. It’s a tough offense. We’re going to get it picked up and no one is panicking or worried about that. As long as we’re moving forward and getting better, that’s all you can ask.”