The Los Angeles Chargers Head Coach Brandon Staley has been one of the most controversial figures in the NFL despite having an overall winning record. He has not had a losing record in his two seasons with the team yet Chargers fans have been screaming for a change in leadership.
When the disaster that ended the season in the playoffs where they blew a 27-0 lead, largest in playoff history, many fans and journalists believed there was no way Staley could return, yet here he is for another attempt to lead the talented Chargers’ roster to the promised land to receive the organization’s first Lombardi Trophy.
Why is Staley so scrutinized by the fan base and is he the leader that GM Tom Telesco thought he was?
He absolutely is the leader Tom Telesco hired him to be, as the consensus about him has always been that the players love him.
Staley being in the top five youngest head coaches in the 2022 season comes with plenty of mistakes that he is more likely to learn from than an older more stubborn coach which should lead to him becoming a premier Head Coach in the NFL today, similarly with rookie NFL players, potential is key when investing in someone long term.
The most glaring reason that makes Staley so controversial is his boldness on 4th down attempts. In his first season with the organization in 2021, no other team converted as many 4th downs as he did in the entire NFL. However, even with star QB Justin Herbert, they cannot convert every 4th down conversion, which has put the defense in less than ideal situations.
Whenever the 4th down attempts were converted with ease, the fan base would slowly start to support Staley more and more. But when a 4th down failed and entirely switched the momentum of the game, fans couldn’t wait for him to be sent to the curb.
The 4th down bravery is one of the things that makes Brandon Staley so unique and is the reason he is the man the Chargers can continue to grow with if the organization does not cave into what the negative spectators feel the right move is letting Staley walk.
There was a slight drop-off from his first season to this most recent season in 4th down fearlessness, but the Chargers still managed to rank top 5 in conversions. This statistic is so important as while Staley is a defensive coach, he is the one who makes the call if they are going to go for it on 4th down and these plays often decide the final results in close games, which the Chargers know all too well.
A major factor that separates the elite teams from the mediocre is the ability to close out games winning one-score games. For the past decade, the Chargers have been the laughingstock of the league when it comes to losing tight games.
Under Head Coach Anthony Lynn, the Chargers team in 2020 went 5-7 in games decided by a field goal or less. This is what the mid-level and low-level teams have in common.
It’s a copycat league, which means that just about every team tries to copy the formula of the Super Bowl-winning teams.
Whether it’s the game plan or the way the team is built, everyone wants to have what the Chiefs have right now. The main factor that all the best teams consistently have is the ability to close out tight games. The Chiefs in 2020 set a record for winning the most consecutive one-score games, being 6 straight.
The Philadelphia Eagles in this past season posted a 7-1 record in close games as another example of what great organizations do.
The Chargers have been miserable in this category for basically the past decade, winning more than half of their one-score games just twice.
Since Staley has been in charge, they have had a positive record in close games, even if it’s just barely in 12-10.
There has been plenty of adversity through the first two seasons of Staley running the team. But through it all, The players gravitate towards him, and he is so young and will only continue to grow, which will be on full display in this upcoming season with a healthy J.C. Jackson and the young talent added in this year’s draft.
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Featured image courtesy of Chargers.com
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