Chargers end miserable season in typical fashion, a loss to Chiefs in final seconds

A season of too many close losses ended appropriately Sunday for the Chargers — with a 13-12 defeat to Kansas City at SoFi Stadium. Harrison Butker’s 41-yard field goal with 49 seconds to play was the difference. All the Chargers’ points came on field goals by Cameron Dicker .

The loss was the fifth in a row and eighth in nine games for the 5-12 Chargers , who finished last in the AFC West. The results Sunday left the Chargers with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2024 draft.

Over the last 19 years, the only time this franchise selected higher was in 2016 when the Chargers took Joey Bosa at No. 3. As for what’s immediately next, the Chargers will conduct exit interviews beginning Monday morning at their Costa Mesa training facility.

Quarterback Justin Herbert is scheduled to speak to the media for the first time since undergoing season-ending surgery on his broken right index finger in mid-December. Corey Linsley also is expected to speak. The veteran center has not publicly addressed his situation or his future since he was sidelined because of a heart issue after Week 3.

With the season concluded, the searches for a head coach and general manager become the Chargers’ main focus. The team is looking to replace Brandon Staley and Tom Telesco, who were fired Dec. 15 .

In recent weeks, Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh clearly has emerged as the leading candidate for NFL teams searching for a new coach. If the Wolverines win the national championship Monday night, he could exit his alma mater on top. From 2011-14, Harbaugh, 60, took San Francisco to three consecutive NFC title games and one Super Bowl — where he lost to a Baltimore team coached by his brother, John — after the 2012 season.

The Chargers moved rather quickly in their two most recent coaching searches, hiring Staley on Jan. 17, 2021, and Anthony Lynn on Jan. 13, 2017.

The process could be prolonged this time. New NFL rules prohibit teams from interviewing in-person coaching candidates employed by other franchises before the end of the divisional round of the playoffs, which conclude Jan. 21.

For a college coach, however, the rules don’t apply, meaning the Chargers or any other team interested in meeting with Harbaugh face-to-face can do so at any time. Teams still are required to adhere to the Rooney Rule in regards to interviewing minority candidates for coach and general manager positions, The Chargers’ head coaching job is widely considered to be the most attractive available, based mostly on Herbert, who is under contract through 2029. A former quarterback for the Chargers, Harbaugh began his head coaching career at the University of San Diego in 2004.

He also coached at Stanford, his college teams going 146-52 in 16 seasons. With the 49ers, he went 44-19-1 but left the organization because of friction with management, something that has been an issue for Harbaugh throughout his coaching career. Suspended twice this season because of alleged recruiting violations and a sign-stealing scandal , Harbaugh is still facing further potential NCAA sanctions as investigations continue.

The NFL Network reported in October that the league could enforce whatever penalties the NCAA imposes on Harbaugh if he does take a job with one of its teams. If the Chargers decide to hire someone with head-coaching experience, another candidate could be Dallas defensive coordinator Dan Quinn. Former Cowboys coach Jason Garrett also interviewed with the Chargers before they hired Staley.

Bill Belichick, who could part ways with New England in the coming days, has been linked to the Chargers by various recent reports. Among the other potential candidates for the Chargers’ coaching job are NFL offensive coordinators Frank Smith (Miami), Ben Johnson (Detroit) and Bobby Slowik (Houston). .