Brandon Staley to meet with Chargers ownership: 'We unpack it'

Embattled coach Brandon Staley to meet with Chargers ownership: ‘We unpack it’

Chargers head coach Brandon Staley frowns at a press conference following loss to the Raiders.

Staff Writer

Dec. 15, 2023 4:30 AM PT

LAS VEGAS — As is his routine the day after a game, Brandon Staley said he would meet with Chargers ownership — Dean and John Spanos — on Friday.

The way this season has unfolded — and then unraveled Thursday night — the next round of talks could be weighty.

Update:

2:40 p.m. Dec. 15, 2023The Chargers fired coach Brandon Staley and general manager Tom Telesco on Friday.

Staley’s job status never has appeared to be more tenuous than after his team lost 63-21 to Las Vegas at Allegiant Stadium.

“Every time there’s a game, we unpack it,” Staley sad. “Every single time. So this will be nothing new [Friday]. We’ll unpack the game, and we’ll talk about what we need to do moving forward.”

In his third season, Staley is 24-24 in the regular season. He lost his only playoff game in January at Jacksonville.

Entering this season, Staley’s team was widely regarded to be a playoff contender before opening with consecutive losses.

The Chargers rallied to win at Minnesota before beating the Raiders at home to improve to 2-2 going into their off week.

But they returned to lose two in a row again and then secured victories in back-to-back games to square their record at 4-4.

Since then, the Chargers have dropped five of six to fall to 15th in the AFC, ahead of only three-win New England.

The defeat at Las Vegas was a record-setter, the Chargers surrendering an all-time high in points for a game. Also, no Chargers team had trailed by 42 points at halftime.

“I hate it for our fans,” Staley said. “I hate it for our players ’cause I know what they’re putting into this. I know what this season has been. We’ve fallen short. But we’ve been in the fight every week, you know, until this one.”

A former college quarterback who emerged quickly in the NFL as a defensive coach, Staley has struggled particularly this season in establishing a defensive identity.

The Chargers were the NFL’s worst pass defense for much of the season and were unable to limit the damage Thursday when the offense’s problems repeatedly gave the Raiders a short field.

Las Vegas finished with a modest 378 total yards with two of its nine touchdowns coming on defense.

Rookie quarterback Aidan O’Connell did throw for 248 yards and four touchdowns.

“It was ugly, man,” edge rusher Khalil Mack said. “It was ugly all night. … They wanted it more. Credit to them.”