CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Less than two months into coach Jim Harbaugh and general manager Joe Hortiz's tenures with the Los Angeles Chargers, they made a franchise-altering decision.
Wide receiver Keenan Allen was the Chargers' longest-tenured player, drafted in 2013, catching passes from Philip Rivers in San Diego and Justin Herbert in L.A. Allen told reporters he hoped to retire with the Chargers and had the best season of his career in 2023: 108 receptions, 1,243 yards and seven touchdowns in 13 games.
But after Allen didn't accept a contract extension at a reduced salary, the team traded him to the Chicago Bears for a fourth-round pick.
The fanbase that celebrated the hiring of Harbaugh and Hortiz as the decision that team owner Dean Spanos had finally gotten right was now criticizing them for trading one of the team's best and most beloved players.
The silver lining, however, was that analysts lauded the 2024 draft class for its talent at receiver, and the Chargers held the fifth pick. It appeared a perfect opportunity to get Herbert a dynamic, young wide receiver to replace Allen.
Instead, the Chargers took offensive tackle Joe Alt. The Giants took LSU WR Malik Nabers with the next pick. At Harbaugh and Hortiz's news conference after the pick, reporters peppered them with questions about the decision to take a tackle on a roster unproven and barren at receiver; the inquiries noticeably frustrated Harbaugh.
"I know the questions are going to come up and you're going to say, 'Well, what about a weapon?' Offensive linemen, we look at as weapons," Harbaugh said. "That group, when we talk about attacking on offense, [the] offensive line is the tip of the spear."
Through two weeks, that decision has proved fruitful. The Chargers' offensive line has been amongst the league's best, powering the NFL's leading rusher in running back J.K. Dobbins, who has 266 yards and two touchdowns through two games. The group will face perhaps its toughest matchup thus far this season Sunday when the Chargers play the Pittsburgh Steelers (1 p.m. ET, CBS), whose defense has allowed just 153 rushing yards, fourth in the NFL.
"If you don't have the ball, you're a blocker. That's the standard that they've set," Harbaugh said. "And that's not something that was ever talked about. You don't talk about it."
The Chargers' 26-3 win over the Carolina Panthers in Week 2 was a beatdown of perhaps the league's worst team, missing one of their best players in defensive tackle Derrick Brown, who suffered a season-ending meniscus injury in Week 1. It was the perfect scenario for the Chargers' offensive line, which bullied the Panthers' defensive line en route to the league's third-best Run Block Win Rate (76%).
The Chargers amassed 219 total rushing yards, averaging 5 yards per carry. Harbaugh said Sunday's performance was a sign of the offensive line's competitiveness and solidarity.
"It's definitely super helpful just going out there knowing you can hand the ball to J.K. and Gus [Edwards], and they're going to go out there and fight for every yard," Herbert said. "It's a great offensive line that battles and play in, play out, we believe in those guys big time."
While the Chargers have put up gaudy rushing stats in both weeks, the offensive line's performance was less impressive in Week 1 against the Las Vegas Raiders. The line struggled for most of that game, with Dobbins breaking off runs of 46 and 61 yard in the second half.
Offensive coordinator Greg Roman credited the struggles to the rust of a season opener, adding that the first half felt like a preseason game. But those struggles could also be explained by the Chargers playing a better defense; one that features All-Pro pass rusher Maxx Crosby.
Against the Raiders, the Chargers had a 63.6% Run Block Win Rate, the second worst in the NFL; their win rate for guards (47.6%) was the worst in the league by 11 percentage points. The Chargers earned a similarly putrid Pass Block Win Rate (36%), the third worst in the league. Against the Panthers, however, they nearly doubled that score (61.5%), ranking 15th.
"I think we still have a lot more to go," center Bradley Bozeman said, "but I think from the first week to now, I think we've grown a lot together."
Harbaugh's strategy of building through the offensive line while passing on dynamic receivers has worked well overall through the first two weeks. Nabers, who had his first 100-yard game in Week 2 for the 0-2 Giants, has been an afterthought. Allen hasn't made an impact in Chicago; he caught four passes for 29 yards in Week 1 and missed the Bears Week 2 game with a heel injury.
Nevertheless, the narrative could change quickly, and Week 3 against OLB T.J. Watt and the Steelers will be a measuring stick for his offensive line and team-building approach.
"Let's find out what we're made of," Harbaugh said.