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Don’t worry we will win at least 5 games next year since we only beat bad teams. We play Raiders 2x, Giants, Jags and Titans.
You have to wonder what, if any, lasting effects there will be from this - on Herbert and on the team.
This wasn't just a hard-fought loss, it was a meltdown. New coach, new staff, new attitude, lots of money spent, yada yada yada.
Same result.
@nickcoulter People will say this was an incomplete roster blah, blah, blah. This team wasn’t ready to play on offense. How do you have your worst execution of the year in a playoff game after an 18 week season? Everyone was glazing Roman when he looked good against the dregs. I still say he ain’t the one to take us further than tgis
Completely agree. The offense had opportunities early to put the game out of reach and completely shit the bed.
This might be blasphemy, but what if the playoff stage is to big for Herbert? Worst game of the year today and he wasn’t all world vs Jags either. Not saying it is, just proposing the question. At this point it has to be on the table.
I hate to say it but, it might not be blasphemy. His INTs came because he was too hot for a wide open McConkey, too hot for a wide open Dissly. He refused to run when he had wide open turf in front of him. Some of this comes from Roman, but a whole lot comes from Herbert himself. I love the dude, no doubt. And I know wind aren’t a QB stat. But he bears a lot on those mighty shoulders.
I hope to do some writing on this at some point, but Herberts in a weird position.
He's too exciting and talented for a team to let go of. He's guaranteed to sell tickets, draw a crowd, do things that drop jaws.
He also might not have the ability to read plays pre-snap, identify the blitz, and make adjustments necessary to elevate himself above an opposing teams game plan.
I don't want this to be the case, but after tonight's game, I am genuinely worried that we might be in QB purgatory. A high ring of it, but purgatory nonetheless.
If Harbaugh can make Alex Smith shine, I’m sure he can help Herbert improve his weaknesses too.
It isn't blasphemy for someone who has only taken his team twice to the playoffs in 5 seasons and failed to perform up to expectation in both. We aren't talking here about Mahomes, Josh Allen, Jackson, or Burrow. We need to stop comparing Herbert to these elite QB's until he proves it, and this isn't an over reaction.
Herbert's performance tonight was something I was nervous it could happen. His clock got sped quickly which led to poor decision making early and throughout the game. There were some miss reads and misses on when he could have stepped in to his throw to avoid the rush and to buy more time to complete his throws. At times, he forgot to use his legs.
Just a thought, did they have good days of practice this week? Air must have been totally foul to breathe. Maybe it had an effect? (Defense seemed ok though)
Yeah I mentioned it too, but defense generally is the higher performing unit all season.
Just my two cents - if it was a big enough problem, it would have been very easy to practice a couple hours away and be out of any air quality issues
Hey everyone - obviously that was a depressing result for all of us.
It's going to be a somber week. I'm in a bit of a weird spot - I'm renovating my garage and my office is just "flex" storage space right now until it's done (end of the week is the plan!). I was hoping to have my offseason stuff ready to go when the season ended for us, but I need at least another week.
I promise to have an outline on StormCloud's plans for the offseason out as soon as the garage is finished and I have my office back. Ryan and I are really hoping to make the draft process really, really fun for everyone with some unique ideas, but as this first year is still a huge learning experience for us, please continue your amazing patience with this site and it's development.
Love you all. Hate seeing this season end like this, but there's more to come for Hortiz/Harbaugh.
@kylededi Thanks Kyle. Great job with the first season here. Looking forward to the off-season. Can’t wait to start getting the draft and prospect posts going.
I appreciate the kind words Erick. I think it was pretty lackluster on my end - I really hope to grow this thing out more and have more articles and content for everyone, but it was our start and I'll learn and grow from here. I'm extremely grateful to have Ryan posting KILLER schematic breakdowns that I really don't think you can find anywhere else, and I hope to BRING IT in the offseason as that's way more my wheelhouse than the in-season stuff.
We're only just starting, but I can't tell you how much the patience of you and our base here means to me.
Kyle. What a hell of a year for Storm Cloud. A big hat tip to you, Ryan, the TDU trio, and all who have made this an astonishing rookie year. I hurt a whole lot about this Chargers loss today, but it’s comforting to know we all have a small and growing home thanks to your dedication, time, and care for this site. We’re a week too early to talk about the offseason for my liking , but here we are, and here I’ll be. Eyes on the horizon, and all will be fine.
I appreciate you brother, and the comment I posted below is echoed right back at you.
By the way, did you ever try to change the username back, or are you happy being Smith? 
I’ve been happy being a smith my whole life. Why should we change this now? Also, I have a number of different ideas as to how I can contribute more to this site moving forward. Let me lick my bolt wounds for a week or two and I’ll get on it.
I still think this was the least Harbaugh and company have to offer this team. What a hell of a year to take a 5-win team with no money into the playoffs in one year, especially with Kansas City in the way. This offseason, with some money, with some direction, even with a depleted roster, should be a good one. I’ll be right here for all of it.
No game is determined by a single play, and the Chargers had a hundred opportunities to create a different outcome, but if the officials had called that second quarter grounding call, which was grounding, the game would’ve been 8-0 with Chargers ball. I know “coulda been” is the dumbest place to live as a sports fan (or a gambler, or a lover, or anything else), but damn, that one’s going to bug me a while.
Gene Sterratore is not only an ex-ref, he’s a former head of officiating. Also, a network employee these days. And as a network employee, and company man, he disagrees with the on-field decisions exactly 0% of the time. He explained that Stroud was outside of the tackle box when he launched the missile to nowhere. You and I and anyone with two eyes and a pulse could see he was inside the tackle box. Bravo, Gene.
@smith It is completely false that Sterratore never disagrees with on field calls. Beyond that, i watched the replay and believe that Stroud was outside the pocket and got the ball over the LOS, as the refs and Sterratore said.
@tau837 Agreed. If you look, he released the ball when he was past the hash which was definitely out of the tackle box.
You funny, man. I love you, Tau. You offer a ton here and I always appreciate your comments and insight. Looking forward to the offseason and a great next season with you.
@smith When we couldn’t punch either of the first drives in for a TD, I was concerned. It reeked of the Jags game where we got all those TO and couldn’t score more points. Then the final straw for me was when we had 4th and 2 and Roman dials up a 1 yard pass route to QJ that he dropped anyway. It seems like the D is strong enough to give the offense time to put points up so they can make the opponent one dimensional, but they are not the type of D to just overly dominate and suffocate another team. Look at the boxscore. It’s a miracle this team made the playoffs. We have a QB and one WR. I think Harbaugh needs to really rethink how he wants to play offense. It’s not 2013 anymore. You need an abundance of skill players to score points.
I get you Erick, and, agreed, it’s not 2013 any longer. But in 2025, a team still needs an IOL, which this team hasn’t had all season. Running KJ on 3rd and 1/2 for a loss started my indigestion. That 4th down play to QJ, which was terrible design with exquisite execution, was also my final straw.
I think the D played well enough to win the game. In the first 25 minutes they played well enough to pitch a shutout. What they needed was an offense who could grind yards, get first downs, eat clock, and score points. Herbert and co could do none of these things, sadly. It’ll be a long offseason, but I think they’ll add some guys (a center, a pass-catching TE, another WR, etc.) to put this offense in a position to win.
I guess I'm not surprised to see the general reaction here, but still find it a bit disappointing. IMO the Chargers have a bright future right now, and that should be the focus.
@tau837 Understood, but you can’t say how this team was manhandled and unprepared by a QB and coaching staff with much less experience is not a red flag that this team isn’t as close as everyone thinks. Was the success of the season more a product of the schedule than an actual scheme and cultural difference? I think that is yet TBD. Right now the results skew more toward the schedule, since they lost to every winning team they played that didn’t have a rookie QB and just got pasted by a so called “marginal” playoff team. We will see what unfolds, but the only proof will be the play on the field next season.
@evolz3737 I think right now the results skew more towards the fact that Hortiz and Harbaugh inherited a weak roster and a terrible cap situation. They will be able to improve upon that this offseason.
Obviously, I agree the proof will be on the field next season. But right now I see no reason to believe those results will not be very good.
@tau837 I guess I’m just scarred from 38 years of watching countless coaches, schemes and players all accounting for the same ending. Not to mention that we probably have to watch KC and Mahomes get glazed on another SB run. I hope you are right, but how we lost has to be eye opening. It wasn’t a close loss after a tight game. It was a complete unraveling where the team looked out coached and unprepared. I thought those types of losses were behind us.
I haven't seen anyone here said that the future of this team isn't bright. Criticizing an obvious poor performance by Justin Herbert isn't saying that he won't a win a championship with this team. With Jim Harbaugh and Joe Ortiz, there is much to be exciting about the future of this team. It isn't blasphemy to criticize Herbert after a poor playoff performance by him. Someone at the most important position the team has should also be open for criticism for poor performance just like the others.
@tui1hit absolutely agree. Justin isn't immune from criticism and expressing disappointment over an outcome doesn't mean turning on the team.
I'm disappointed as hell today and shocked at what sounds like a terrible performance from Herbert. Still love the kid, have confidence in him, and think the team is headed in the right direction. But I'll unapologetically call it like I see it. Unfortunately....or perhaps fortunately....I didn't see this one. The results suck but I'm moving on to a hopefully very exciting offseason.
Sorry I wasn't here to participate. Not sorry, from what I've read here and other articles, that I missed the game. Snow/ice brought a tree down on a buddy's fence, cows got out, 6 hours to get them all penned up again.
So 2024 season is in the books. Herbert narrative will suck....but right now it's factually hard to refute. I still think the team is headed in the right direction but this result is disappointing. Everyone here has the right to voice that disappointment, to feel the PTSD brought about by years of "chargering", and to offer opinions about what went right and wrong. Some I agree with, some I don't. Sounds like life, huh? 😜 For me? I'd like to not see Roman back....but I doubt that happens. I'd like to see the inside of both lines strengthened and better skill players, particularly at TE. That's my short wish list.
I trust that Hortiz will continue to build this roster. I hope that Harbaugh will continue to elevate the players' confidence and his staff their level of play. Lotta work to do this off-season. Excited to see how it plays out with cap room.
Big thanks to Kyle for Stormcloud!! Thanks to Ryan, TDU, and everyone else who contributed and continues to contribute. We're building something here, just as the Chargers are building something new as well.
So yeah....disappointed in this game result. Cognizant that there's a lotta work to be done but confident in the direction. Hoping that key weaknesses are addressed, that both the processes and results lead to a deeper run in 2025. Excited to see how we get there.
@buck-melanoma Sounds like wrangling cows was much more fun than watching this slop.
@buck-melanoma We usually see things pretty much the same way, so I think the overall feeling today is we probably exited one round earlier than most would have expected, but the way the lost was more alarming than the fact that they did. Looking unprepared, flustered and out coached was not anything I would have thought possible with this staff. Add in the fact that the stage seemed a little big for Herbert and suddenly there are more questions about the future of this team than the supposed “incomplete” roster. Anyone whose take is the success of the season might have been more due to opponent than scheme/culture has an argument at this point. This isn’t Jacksonville bad, but the way they lost is leaving a lot of doubt right now on what this team can be. Everyone thinks we are just an offseason away, but when you take a step back and see how many players are on expiring or untenable contracts, we have a ton of holes to fill just to get back to where we are now. I have faith in the regime, but it will be interesting to see how they go about building for next season when there are real expectations. Way different being the hunted.
@evolz3737 you're right, we do usually align pretty closely on our views of the team and individual players. Again, I didn't see the game but I trust the eyes here and was shocked by the score.
You can only play your schedule and we beat the teams we should've, in general. There were teams that pushed us around too. I, like you, am full tilt behind Justin....but I'm a little concerned about his confidence taking a hit. I really wish he'd spend some time with Rivers. That's not a knock on Harbaugh....I just think Rivers might instill some things that Harbaugh possibly can't. Blowing all the sunshine in the world up someone's ass doesn't work to motivate and inspire self-confidence in everyone.
As for the roster? Yes, definitely holes to fill. But no NFL roster is ever perfect. It's just not possible with the salary cap. That's a good thing for competition.
I believe in the direction their headed and believe we have a GM and HC who can keep strengthening the roster. I'm eager to see what an off-season without such binding financial handcuffs will bring. I'm optimistic....but, like you, I'm not blind to the challenges nor do I think this year was a full measure of the team and staff. We played quite a few weaker opponents and got pushed around by some stronger ones. That bears watching.
As long as the Broncos get their asses kicked today I'll be OK. 😉
Happy to see the Steelers taken out too. FTG.
So far the Bills defense looks fully prepared to shit the bed. 😜🫤
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