The Los Angeles Chargers sit at the bottom of the AFC West with a disappointing 4-11 record. With their last game of the season this Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs, the team’s faithful are looking at next season for a rebound. Head coach Brandon Staley’s departure has many curious about who will fill that slot to bring the team to relevance in Los Angeles.
One prominent former Chargers player believes he knows what the team needs regarding new coaching blood, and it does not emanate in New England with this year’s current 4-12 losing head coach shocker in Bill Belichick.
“No, he’s not, and for a lot of reasons,” former Chargers linebacker Shawne “Lights Out,” Merriman said on OutKick’s “Hot Mic.” “Don’t get me wrong, and I want to take his past resumé. We all know how great of a coach Bill Belichick is. I don’t know if you bring in somebody like Bill Belichick right now, that it’s going to guarantee a turnaround, a success.”
The Belichick Bomb: Is He Done In New England?
Belichick is a juggernaut of football with eight Super Bowls under his belt, two with the New York Giants, where he was an assistant coach, and six as the head coach of the New England Patriots. However, with all the woes of the 4-12 season piling up on Belichick’s winning name, he is in the mix for a potential change of NFL scenery.
Merriman believes that the total implementation of the Belichick system could be a problem.
“You’ve got these superstars on a team. Somebody has to come in and win right now,” Merriman continued. “And if Bill Belichick is going to come in and bring his whole entire staff, or hire his own people, you’ve got Justin Herbert and all these guys playing for three and four different coordinators over the past few years.
“That is a lot of turnover. And you know Bill Belichick is going to want to come in and call the shots, bring all his people in. I doubt very seriously if he keeps anybody on that staff. So, you’re talking about a big turnover. So, he wouldn’t be my first. He would probably be my last, to be quite honest.”
Who Does Shawn Merriman Think Should Coach Patriots?
So, who is the “Lights Out” choice to lead the Chargers back to an electrifying presence in the West?
For Merriman, it’s as simple as looking at the top of the collegiate ranks.
No Surprise Here
“It would be Jim. It would be Jim Harbaugh,” he said. “He’s done well with quarterbacks. He’s done extremely well when he’s had talented quarterbacks. It all depends on who he brings in as a defensive coordinator because, in my opinion, the last couple of games of the Chargers season, it’s been the offense.
“If you got an opportunity at Jim Harbaugh, you do it,” Merriman continued. “Pull the trigger and bring him in. [Then] let’s talk about the defensive side of the football, because that is the most important part of what’s going to hold this team back, because we know what they could do on the offensive side of the ball.”
Per reports, the Chargers may have already met with Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh, who might be looking for an NFL return given the sign-stealing scandal that came toward the end of the college football season. With a perfect 14-0 record this season ahead of the CFP National Championship, Harbaugh is undoubtedly the man in college football.
Now the only question is will he make that move if offered, or will he remain committed to the collegiate program that he is keeping a powerhouse?
