It's been over five years since the Los Angeles Chargers' last playoff win. The franchise hasn't made it past the divisional round since 2007, and their last division title came in 2009. In recent years, the Chargers' record has simply not reflected their talent and they have not lived up to the expectations set for them heading into each season.
In 2023, the Chargers went 5-12 and finished last in the AFC West. The poor performance led to the firing of head coach Brandon Staley and general manager Tom Telesco during the season.
In a move to turn around the franchise, the Chargers hired Jim Harbaugh, who is coming off a College Football Playoff National Championship with Michigan. With an established leader in place -- one who went to the Super Bowl as a head coach of the San Francisco 49ers -- the expectations for the Chargers next season are the highest they've been in some time.
Los Angeles star defensive end Joey Bosa discussed his interactions with the new head coach, and picked up something quickly about Harbaugh.
"I think all he wants to do is win," Bosa said, via the New York Post.
"We sat down and probably talked for 30 minutes, an hour a couple of weeks ago," Bosa said. "Great first impressions. … I have a lot of confidence in him and the staff that he's bringing around him."
When asked if having Harbaugh as the head coach will change the team's fate, Bosa said, "That's an expectation for sure," though the veteran wasn't quite ready to guarantee too much.
"I'd like to win Game 1 first, then we can talk about Week 2 and then Week 3. Sometimes getting caught up with all the Super Bowl talk and all the hype gets you unfocused and worrying about the wrong things when you should just be worrying about what's in front of you," Bosa said. "There's a lot of talk of Super Bowl every year, and every year I kind of have a similar answer like, 'All right, let's see how the first week goes and then we'll talk about that.'"
Harbaugh's resume shows he is capable of leading a winning team, with a 49-22-1 record as an NFL head coach (including postseason) and a 133-52 NCAA record (including postseason).
Bosa, who has been with the Chargers his entire career, complimented who Harbaugh is as a person and a coach.
"I think he seems like a really genuine guy, which you don't find that a lot in coaches all the time, Bosa said. "He's interesting. He loves football more than anything. ... The way he talked about his feelings toward this job and toward the future was pretty exciting."
Bosa has seen four head coaches and just two playoff berths since joining the team in 2016.
In nine games last season, Bosa finished the year with 6.5 sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery, before a sprained foot landed him on injured reserve. The Chargers defense has struggled, but having Bosa healthy all year would certainly help their performance. And having Harbaugh as their new coach certainly won't hurt, either.
