What the Chargers Learned During Their Week 7 Bye, From Defensive Calling to Red-Zone Execution

Entering Week 8 at SoFi Stadium, Los Angeles is still searching for its first win in 2026. At the bye week, the Chargers’ head coach highlighted what has and has not worked so far, and what the team plans to change next.

By The Apex Times Newsroom3 min readAI-assisted Apex article

The central picture for the Los Angeles Chargers entering their Week 7 bye is simple: they were 0-6 and, as head coach Jim Harbaugh put it, “0-6 gives nobody comfort.” The bye provided an opportunity to reassess both sides of the ball before the Bolts return as the road team against the Rams in Week 8 at SoFi Stadium.

On defense, the franchise’s most visible offseason change has been the hire of Chris O’Leary as defensive coordinator. Chargers reporting going into the bye said O’Leary replaced Jesse Minter, coming from a stint as Western Michigan’s defensive coordinator after serving as the Chargers safeties coach in 2024. Through six games, the Chargers rank eighth in success rate (44.4 percent) and are tied for 12th in EPA per play (-0.028), framing those early results as evidence the new coordinator’s system has landed quickly.

The Chargers also described how O’Leary’s early play calling overlaps with what came before. Even with the scheme changes that motivated the coordinator switch, the team said it is blitzing at essentially the same rate this season (26.1 percent) as it did in the previous two years (26.7 percent). A more notable difference, according to the team, is that Los Angeles has shown less dime defense this year (13.2 percent in 2026 versus 23.8 percent in 2024 and 2025). The Chargers linked that dip in dime usage to availability, noting that Derwin James missed the past three games with a hamstring injury.

On offense, Harbaugh’s assessment was that the unit has not met expectations. The bye-week review said McDaniel’s offense has been a disappointment through six games, with Harbaugh saying, “Not a person in the offensive room - player or coach - is where they want it to be.” The team’s statistical snapshot supported that evaluation, ranking 26th in yards per game (287.2) and 30th in points per game (15.0), while rating tied for 31st in success rate (40.1 percent) and last in EPA per play (-0.190).

With the first win still ahead of them, the Chargers said the focus coming out of the bye could include simplifying the playbook. Harbaugh told reporters the team is looking at “volume” and creating a faster path for plays to be understood and executed, with emphasis on first-down efficiency and red-zone situations, including “ball at the 1-yard line” and performance in backed-up and third-down scenarios. He also said the staff is evaluating how much needs to be practiced and how concepts move from meetings to install to the practice field.

The Week 7 bye story, then, is two tracks: a defense that is producing comparatively well under a first-year coordinator, and an offense that is still struggling to turn yardage into efficient drives and points. How the simplification plan translates on the field will be tested immediately when Los Angeles faces the Rams in Week 8.

Why It Matters

If the Chargers want to change their season trajectory quickly, the offense must improve in the areas Harbaugh highlighted: first-down movement, red-zone conversion, and scoring from short distance.
O’Leary’s early production gives Los Angeles a foundation on defense, but the team’s ability to sustain that performance depends on personnel availability, including players like Derwin James.
The bye-week decision to consider playbook simplification suggests a priority shift toward faster learning and clearer execution rather than only adding new concepts.
With Week 8 against the Rams on the horizon, the coaching emphasis on execution during the install-to-practice-to-game process will be tested almost immediately.

Sources

Key Facts

The Chargers entered their Week 7 bye at 0-6, still looking for their first win of the 2026 season.
Chris O’Leary, hired as defensive coordinator after replacing Jesse Minter, has produced early results for Los Angeles through six games (eighth in success rate at 44.4 percent and tied for 12th in EPA per play at -0.028).
The team said it is blitzing at a similar rate under O’Leary (26.1 percent) compared with the previous two years (26.7 percent).
Offensively, Los Angeles ranked 26th in yards per game (287.2) and 30th in points per game (15.0) through six games, tied for 31st in success rate (40.1 percent) and last in EPA per play (-0.190).
The Chargers tied a decrease in dime defense usage (13.2 percent in 2026 versus 23.8 percent in 2024 and 2025) to Derwin James missing the past three games with a hamstring injury.
Harbaugh indicated the offensive plan coming out of the bye could involve simplifying the playbook and improving execution on first down and in red-zone and third-down situations.