Cover 32: Chargers 0-3 start inches toward full reset, plus game balls, biggest gaffes from Week 3

The Los Angeles Chargers are looking into the abyss with the franchise's future firmly in question after what has largely been a lifeless 0-3 start. 

As they well know by now, no victory is gift-wrapped in the NFL, but they sure as heck missed some gimmes en route to this winless start. They were sizable favorites at home in Week 1 and Week 2 against the Arizona Cardinals and Las Vegas Raiders, who each lost 14 games last season. They lost both of those contests, 26-14. 

Then, as the schedule ramped up in Week 3 and they traveled to Buffalo to face the Bills, they saw Josh Allen and Co. come out flat. Los Angeles jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the first quarter and generated five turnovers in the game. Guess what happened? They lost. Yes, despite a double-digit lead and a handful of turnovers, they were outscored 24-6 the rest of the way to drop what should've been another layup opportunity. 

Coming into Sunday, teams with 5-plus turnovers and a -4 turnover margin were 2-81-1 straight up since 2013, according to the Action Network. The Chargers became just the third team to allow a win in that scenario, joining ... the Chargers (2015 and 2022). 

Since the playoffs expanded in 2020, only one team has overcome a 0-3 start to the season and still make the playoffs (2025 Texans). All other 24 teams that previously endured this type of slow start ended up on the outside looking in on the postseason. 

Looking at the upcoming schedule, a 0-9 record feels more plausible than them clawing back to playoff relevance. Four of their next six opponents won a playoff game last season, with the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens being the other two teams on the docket. Four of those six games are also on the road. 

Again, this is a team that was a sleeper Super Bowl pick coming into the season as well as a possible AFC West winner. All that optimism feels like a lifetime ago, and we're just three weeks in.  

So let's predict a little bit. What does this Chargers team do if the bottom continues to fall out from under them and the 0-9 fears are, in fact, realized? Parting ways with offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel may be the first domino to fall, but everything should be on the table, including a full-blown reset. 

Under this doomsday scenario of a 0-9 start to 2026, it'd clinch an under-.500 season for the franchise and would be the first time that's happened for John Harbaugh in his entire NFL coaching career. The lowest record Harbaugh has ever registered was an 8-8 season in 2014 when he was head coach of the San Francisco 49ers. 

After that campaign, Harbaugh and the Niners mutually agreed to part ways. 

When Harbaugh was hired in 2024, it was with the expectation that the phrase "Chargering" would go extinct. It hasn't. L.A. has gone 0-2 in the playoffs under Harbaugh, with both losses resulting in calamity. During his first playoff run, Justin Herbert threw four interceptions in a loss to Houston. Then, last postseason, they mustered a field goal in a loss to New England. If they can't even make the playoffs now, you need to question everything. 

And that brings us to Herbert. There's no denying the physical gifts. From a talent perspective, he's nearly everything you'd want in a bona fide franchise quarterback. You can acknowledge that while also saying that something is off. With Sunday's loss to Buffalo, Herbert is now 52-46 as a starter. When you add his 0-3 playoff record to the ledger, he's suddenly inching closer to a .500 quarterback (52-49). 

Trades surrounding a quarterback of Herbert's caliber and talent level simply don't happen in the NFL. At the end of the day, he's still just 28 years old and, as we noted, wildly talented. He also has a no-trade clause in the five-year, $262.5 million extension he signed back in 2023 that runs through the 2029 season. 

But if this season continues to circle the toilet as it has, it's worth wondering whether a divorce would be welcomed by all parties involved, especially if Harbaugh's seat warms up to the point where a change is made. Herbert would, in theory, be able to hand-pick his next destination, while the Chargers reset with what would be a historic trade haul. 

Again, these things don't happen in today's NFL, and this feels more like an NBA-type trade scenario, but there's a first time for everything. And Los Angeles may be wading into a perfect storm of unprecedented craziness. 

At the very least, this 0-3 start plants a seed of doubt in the entire operation and allows these types of conversations to sprout. 

Game Balls

How Game Balls work: Six are awarded to standout players from the slate of teams that won their contests, and only one player on a team can get a game ball. 

Bijan Robinson

ATL • RB • #7

Att66

Yds349

TD2

FL0

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• Week 3 stats: 29 carries, 194 yards rushing, 2 rushing TDs; 2 receptions, 19 yards receiving

Going back to Atlanta's upset win over the Packers on Thursday, Robinson was a man possessed at Lambeau Field. His 194 yards rushing were the fifth-most by a visitor at Lambeau Field all-time. He also became the first running back with 175-plus rushing yards in consecutive primetime games since Barry Sanders in 1994. 

Marcus Mariota

WAS • QB • #8

CMP%63.8

YDs294

TD4

INT0

YD/Att6.26

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• Week 3 stats: 19-of-31 passing, 183 yards passing, 3 passing TDs; 5 carries, 11 yards rushing

Maybe the biggest upset of Week 3 was in Landover, Maryland, where the Commanders took down the defending Super Bowl champs. With Jayden Daniels (elbow) sidelined, Marcus Mariota got the start and tossed three touchdowns in a 33-31 win over the Seahawks. This was Mariota's first three-passing touchdown game with no interceptions since 2019, when he was with the Titans. This victory also moves Mariota to 3-0 in his career as a starter against Seattle. 

Aaron Rodgers

PIT • QB • #8

CMP%58.4

YDs700

TD4

INT2

YD/Att6.19

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• Week 3 stats: 19-of-34 passing, 292 yards passing, 3 passing TDs, 1 INT; 3 carries, 10 yards rushing

A week after they mustered just a field goal (and drew the ire of us calling the offense broken), the Steelers woke up on Sunday in a 30-27 win over Cincinnati. Rodgers became the third-oldest player since 1970 to have three passing touchdowns in a game. It was also the first time in his career with multiple 20-plus air-yard passing touchdowns in the first quarter of a game. 

Talanoa Hufanga

DEN • SAF • #9

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• Week 3 stats: 5 total tackles, 1 sack, 3 passes defended, 2 INTs, 1 TD

Hufanga was all over the place in Denver's come-from-behind win over the Rams on Sunday night. The Broncos safety made key plays all throughout the second half, including two picks on Matthew Stafford. The first was on a throw intended for Kyren Williams, which Hufanga took 66 yards to the house for a pick-six. He then clinched the win for Denver with a game-sealing interception on the final play as Stafford tried to throw a game-winning touchdown to Davante Adams in the end zone. 

Brock Bowers

LV • TE • #89

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• Week 3 stats: 10 receptions (13 targets), 116 yards receiving, 1 TD reception. 

Welcome back, Brock Bowers! If you were a Raiders fan or someone who had Bowers in fantasy, you've been dying to see the star tight end back on the field, and he showed why in Las Vegas' Week 3 win over the Saints. Bowers' 13 targets were by far the most on the Raiders. The next most targeted player was Tre Tucker, who saw four looks from Kirk Cousins. 

Tyler Loop

BAL • K • #33

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• Week 3 stats: 2-for-2 on FG attempts (long of 56 yards); 4-for-4 on PATs

There may have been no player more tortured during the offseason than Tyler Loop, who famously missed a game-winning field goal against the Steelers that kept Baltimore from playoff contention. While there's still a long way to go before the Ravens get back to the playoffs, Loop had a redeemable moment in Rio de Janeiro. The Ravens miraculously got the ball in Dallas territory and called a timeout with one second left, allowing Loop to step onto the field to attempt a 56-yard game-winner. With ice in his veins, Loop put it through the uprights. 

Notable Week 3 gaffes

Joe Burrow fumbles game away for Bengals

The Bengals found themselves at field goal range with less than a minute to play in their matchup against the Steelers. Trailing 30-27, Burrow and the Cincinnati offense tried to move closer downfield to make it easier for Evan McPherson to force overtime or take the outright lead. 

On a first-and-10 play, however, Burrow was under siege and coughed up the football. Pittsburgh recovered and killed the clock to move to 2-1 on the season. 

That turnover spoiled what was a solid day for Burrow through the air, completing 28-of-37 for 282 yards and three passing touchdowns. 

Sam Darnold throws critical pick-six in return

Sam Darnold made his return to the field on Sunday after suffering a glute injury in the early minutes of the season-opener. While the Super Bowl champion tossed four touchdowns on the afternoon, he also threw two interceptions. His last one was a back-breaker. Trailing the Commanders 27-24, Darnold had the Seattle offense at midfield before his throw, intended for A.J. Barner, was intercepted by linebacker Kain Medrano, who returned it 50 yards for a touchdown. 

That made it a two-score lead for Washington, which proved to be too much for Seattle to overcome. 

Cam Ward's game-losing INT

The Tennessee Titans had a golden opportunity to notch their first win of 2026, but Cam Ward couldn't thrust his team to victory. With the ball at the New York eight-yard line and trailing 12-7 with about 23 seconds left in regulation, Ward took a first-and-goal snap. 

The former No. 1 overall pick had a clean pocket, then scrambled out to his left. Instead of throwing the ball out of bounds to live another day, he threw across his body on a pass intended for Eric Ayomanor. Jevon Holland picked it off. 

Ward is now 3-17 as a starter in the NFL, making him just the seventh quarterback since 1950 to lose 17 of his first 20 starts. 

Drake Maye continues to turn the ball over

The Patriots may officially have a Drake Maye problem. The Patriots quarterback has struggled with turnovers this season (and even going back to last postseason) and may have hit rock bottom in Week 3. Maye had three total turnovers (two interceptions and a fumble) during New England's 35-6 loss at the hands of the Jaguars. 

Maybe the most egregious moment for Maye came just before halftime. With a chance to cut the Jaguars' lead down to one possession, Maye rolled out to his right on a goal-line play and tossed a pick to Travis Hunter. 

Maye now has the most interceptions (6) in the first three games of the season after a Super Bowl start since Rex Grossman. His seven turnovers over the first three weeks are the most by a Patriots player since Drew Bledsoe in 1995. 

Trevor Lawrence kneels at the 1-yard line

If you had Trevor Lawrence in fantasy or wagered on him to score a touchdown on Sunday, you endured a bad beat. On a third-and-4 attempt at the New England 16-yard line, Lawrence ran up the left side of the field, but before he crossed the goal line for the score, he took a knee. Jacksonville was up 28-6 at the time and, with the game being in the fourth quarter, Lawrence opted to take a knee to try and kill the clock. 

However, he didn't realize how much time (eight minutes) was left in the game. The Patriots also called a timeout, so no real time ticked off, and Bhayshul Tuten scored on the next possession. 

Two-minute drill

Here are some of my quick-hitting takeaways/notes from Week 3:

• There were 12 games decided by a single possession on Sunday, which is tied for the most in a single day in NFL history. 
• Rams-Broncos was one heck of a way to end Sunday's Week 4 action. I wouldn't hate seeing it again in mid-February. 
• The Rams have started 1-2 in three of the last four seasons.
• This was the Bills' first win with a -4 turnover margin since 1997 against the Indianapolis Colts. Who was starting at quarterback for Indy? Jim Harbaugh. 
• Deshaun Watson was surprisingly clutch in the Week 3 win over Carolina, connecting with Harold Fannin for the go-ahead touchdown after the two-minute warning. This was the first time in Watson's tenure with the Browns that he's gone consecutive games with at least two passing touchdowns and zero interceptions. 
• Bryce Young came back down to earth a bit after a stellar first two weeks. He made a puzzling checkdown pass on a fourth-and-16 play with about 90 seconds left in the game that turned the ball over on downs. 
• Even in defeat, it's hard not to feel optimistic about the Jets. They are frisky enough to hang with most teams and started to see some real flashes from their first-round rookie tight end Kenyon Sadiq. He caught seven passes for 105 yards and a touchdown. Buy stock in Sadiq wherever you can get it. 
• Jahmyr Gibbs is the fourth player since 2000 with 450-plus scrimmage yards and six-plus touchdowns through three games. 
• The Texans are 0-3 for the second straight year. Last season, they became the first team since 2020 to overcome a 0-3 start and make the playoffs. I'm not confident they'll beat the odds this time around. 
• Speaking of buying stock, Josh Downs is going to be a real factor for the Colts going forward. While Keenan Allen found the end zone, Downs saw a team-high 11 targets, which he turned into five catches for 77 yards. 
• It'll get lost in the Drake Maye discourse from that game, but Trevor Lawrence looks dialed in, and the Jaguars QB bounced back well from a so-so outing in Denver last week. 
• Cam Little had the leg on what would've been an NFL-record 70-yard field goal, but it was pushed wide right by just a few inches. Kickers are 0-9 on 70-plus-yard attempts in the Super Bowl era. 
• Patrick Mahomes tied Tom Brady for the most wins (115) by a QB through 150 career starts. 
• De'Von Achane suffered a knee injury on Sunday, and head coach Jeff Hafley said, "It doesn't sound very optimistic." If he's down, that takes the lone difference-maker out of the Dolphins' offense. 
• Even though they won on Sunday with Jameis Winston under center, it'd behoove the Giants to keep scouring the market for an upgrade/competition. 
• The Buccaneers are 0-3 for the first time since 2014 and are 3-11 in their past 14 games. 
• Minnesota is the first team since 1970 to start 3-0 and tally less than 250 total yards in each game. 
• The Raiders have as many wins (3) as the entire AFC South. 
• Kirk Cousins is the second player age 38 or older to have nine-plus passing touchdowns in the first three games of the season, joining Tom Brady (2015 and 2021). 
• As good as Tyler Shough has been to start the season, you can't throw an interception and fumble twice over your final three drives. 
  

• The fans in Rio de Janeiro were treated to a heck of a game between the Ravens and Cowboys. The international games continue in Week 4 when the Colts take on the Commanders in London.