Ladd McConkey paused for a moment in front of his locker.
“I don’t know,” he said, less than 24 hours after another humbling Chargers playoff loss.
“To be honest with you, it’s like, I don’t know — but you gotta get that monkey off our back,” McConkey said.
A tormenting 16-3 defeat to the New England Patriots in the AFC wild-card round sent the Chargers’ season to an early finish Sunday for the second consecutive season. Little went right against the Patriots in coach Jim Harbaugh‘s second year in L.A., prompting questions about what needs to change to make the Chargers a Super Bowl contender.
Harbaugh, general manager Joe Hortiz and the rest of the team’s staff will have a full offseason to delve into went awry against the Patriots and a season that fell short of expectations.
Against New England, there were offensive line woes and Justin Herbert getting pressured on 30 of 44 drop-backs, which, according to Pro Football Focus, was the second-highest pressure rate of the entire season (behind the Chargers’ Week 14 effort against the Philadelphia Eagles).
Herbert, still searching for his first postseason victory after his third defeat Sunday, showed up in uncharacteristic fashion against the Patriots.
Last season, he tossed a career-worst four interceptions in a playoff loss to Houston. Against New England, Herbert struggled to find open receivers and was sacked six times while the Chargers failed to implement a run game, leading to questions about offensive coordinator Greg Roman’s future with the team.
Center Bradley Bozeman, often at the heart of public criticism over the Chargers’ offensive line, fought back tears when speaking about his struggles on the field. But the eighth-year veteran got choked up the most talking about Herbert.
“It just sucks that we can’t get him there,” Bozeman said. “That’s what sucks. He’s one of my best friends — and it sucks, like it just sucks, because I want it bad for him. I want it bad for myself, I want it bad for everybody, but him especially.”
Whatever the fix, if the Chargers have one, the makeup of the franchise will dramatically shift. Defensive coordinator Jesse Minter is being courted by a host of NFL teams — including the Cleveland Browns, Tennessee Titans and Las Vegas Raiders — for head coaching jobs.
Wide receiver Keenan Allen, linebackers Odafe Oweh and Khalil Mack and defensive lineman Teair Tart are among 27 players set to hit free agency. The Chargers also are set to have more than $100 million in salary-cap space to deal with for potential additions.
Tart expressed interest in a potential extension with the team. Mack, who also mulled retirement a season ago, is going to think about whether he wants to come back for a 13th NFL season.
The 34-year-old declined to say whether he’d be back with the Chargers if he decided to play.
“Just trying to stay as present as possible,” Mack said. “Make a decision based on how I’m feeling, how my family’s feeling. … Just figuring it out day by day.”
Outside linebacker Tuli Tuipulotu, who emerged in his third season in the NFL with 13 sacks, was asked if he felt anything needed to shift to turn playoff heartbreak into victories.
Tuipulotu repeated a sentiment that defensive back Tarheeb Still and safety Daiyan Henley repeated earlier Monday:
“I just hope everyone on defense comes back,” Tuipulotu said.
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