Los Angeles Chargers schedule 2026: Takeaways, predictions
LOS ANGELES -- The Los Angeles Chargers' 2026 schedule was released along with the rest of the NFL slate on Thursday.
The first two seasons of coach Jim Harbaugh's era in Los Angeles have been marked by regular season success and postseason failure. Harbaugh took a five-win team to the playoffs two years in a row; both seasons, the team won 11 games. But Harbaugh promised championships when he came to L.A., and the Chargers have yet to win a playoff game.
Instead, the team has had two embarrassing playoff losses. The latest, a wild-card round loss to the Patriots, led to the firing of Harbaugh's longtime friend and offensive coordinator, Greg Roman.
But there's renewed excitement in Los Angeles, as the team hired Mike McDaniel to be offensive coordinator, the former Miami Dolphins coach, who is considered to be one of the league's best offensive minds. McDaniel has created some of the most explosive offenses in NFL history but has never had a quarterback as talented as Justin Herbert. For that reason, many in the organization believe the pairing will make the Chargers legitimate championship contender in Harbaugh's third season.
Here's what's in store for the Chargers:
Chargers 2026 regular-season schedule
Week 1: Sept. 13 vs. Arizona Cardinals
Week 2: Sept. 20 vs. Las Vegas Raiders
Week 3: Sept. 27 at Buffalo Bills
Week 4: Oct. 4 at Seattle Seahawks
Week 5: Oct. 11 vs. Denver Broncos
Week 6: Oct. 18 at Kansas City Chiefs
Week 7: BYE
Week 8: Nov. 1 at Los Angeles Rams
Week 9: Nov. 8 vs. Houston Texans
Week 10: Nov. 15 at Baltimore Ravens (MNF)
Week 11: Nov. 22 vs. New York Jets
Week 12: Nov. 29 vs. New England Patriots (SNF)
Week 13: Dec. 6 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Week 14: Dec. 13 at Raiders
Week 15: Dec. 20 vs. San Francisco 49ers (TNF)
Week 16: Dec. 27 at Miami Dolphins
Week 17: Jan. 3 vs. Chiefs*
Week 18: Jan. 10 at Broncos*
*Dates for Weeks 17 and 18 are to be determined
Strength of schedule: The Chargers have the ninth-hardest schedule in the league (opponents had a .522 winning percentage in 2025).
DraftKings over/under win total:10.5
ESPN analyst Mike Clay's projected win total: 9.5
Biggest takeaway
There will be less travel. Last season, the Chargers traveled a league-leading 37,086 miles, which included a trip to Brazil. The Chargers will still have the seventh-most miles logged this season (24,816), but that's a significant dropoff from what they endured in 2025. There's no way to quantify how much the travel may have impacted the team's performance last season. But the lighter travel could help the team maintain consistency and allow time for recovery -- especially without an international trip.
Circle this date
Nov. 29. This will be a rematch of last year's wild-card round playoff game against the Patriots, which featured one of the worst performances of quarterback Justin Herbert's career, in the Chargers' 16-3 loss. The game will be on "Sunday Night Football," providing an opportunity for Herbert and the Chargers at redemption in front of a national audience.
Bold prediction
The Chargers will start 3-0, marking the first time they've started back-to-back seasons on a three-game win streak since the 2001 and 2002 seasons. Los Angeles begins the 2026 season with two teams who were out of the playoffs last season -- the Cardinals and the Raiders -- both games they will likely be favorites in and both at SoFi Stadium. The Chargers' biggest test comes in Week 3, a cross-country trip to face quarterback Josh Allen and the Bills.
Is this the year the Chargers finally win the AFC West?
It's been 16 seasons since the Chargers won their division. Last year, they appeared on track to break that streak following a 3-0 start (against all three of their divisional opponents), but L.A. faded and finished second in the division to the Broncos.
With tackles Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater back from season-ending injuries and new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel, on paper, the Chargers have a legitimate shot. But this team's success has always been rooted in hypotheticals.
