The Los Angeles Chargers are the latest team to enter the fray for a new head coach in 2021 after announcing the firing of bench boss Anthony Lynn on Monday morning.
Owner Dean Spanos had many kind words for Lynn in the team’s announcement of their head coach’s termination, though he did acknowledge that the franchise is expecting more from the team than what it has gotten over the past couple of years.
“I’m not sure there is another person in this league more respected as a human being than Anthony,” Spanos gushed. “And I want to sincerely express my deepest gratitude for his leadership during a time of great change for our organization.
“As we all know, this is a results-driven business and, simply put, the results of the past two years have fallen short of expectations. We have been innovative in many facets of our organization in recent years, and we need to carry that over to our entire operation. Our fans need to know that the Los Angeles Chargers are committed to consistent, winning football.”
Spanos also indicated that the team will not be wasting any time in commencing their search for Lynn’s replacement. Expect similar names to those floated for the Jets top job—such as Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bienemy and Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus—to be discussed for the Chargers post, which offers a very attractive situation in a city like Los Angeles to go with a roster chock full of young talent.
Lynn’s Chargers put up a 33-31 regular season record across four seasons while he was in charge, making the playoffs once in 2018 after a 12-4 regular season and winning their Wild Card matchup against a Lamar Jackson-led Ravens team in the superstar’s rookie season before falling to the Patriots the following week. While the Pats and Chargers failed to make the tournament this season, the Ravens head into Wild Card Weekend 2021 as the hottest team in the league, boasting -190 odds to take down the Tennessee Titans as visitors on Sunday.
But after that playoff success, the Chargers saw a major regression in 2019, falling to 5-11 while losing nine games by one score or less. Lynn’s team’s inability to win close games continued to be an issue this season, losing another seven by one score or less. There are many factors that have to do with these late game woes, but Lynn’s game and time-management problems certainly didn’t help.
It’s a shame that Lynn couldn’t hold on for one more season considering the franchise’s future looks quite rosy with a litany of talented players on offense and defense complementing presumptive 2020 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Justin Herbert, who should be taking the snaps from under center for many years to come at SoFi Stadium.
Lynn is, as Spanos noted, one of the most respected men in the league, so there’s no doubt that he will get another chance coaching in the NFL. The 52-year-old’s track record with the Chargers could force him to return to a coordinator role, but he certainly still has what it takes to lead a team as the head coach and could very well get another gig at the top of another team’s coaching tree as soon as this offseason. He’s certainly preferable got a better chance than Adam Gase.
