How Chargers Used Patriots As Motivation After Playoff Collapse

The Chargers suffered an embarrassing playoff loss last season, but head coach Brandon Staley had a unique method to help his team turn the page.

Los Angeles blew a 27-point lead to the Jacksonville Jaguars, which resulted in ridicule and questions over how the Chargers are handling Justin Herbert’s future.

Kellen Moore was brought in as offensive coordinator to help get Herbert’s career back on track, and Staley went to work on getting his team in the right mindset for this season.

“To that end, Staley showed his team a reel of famous collapses, including the (New England) Patriots blowing a 21-3 lead to the (Indianapolis) Colts in the AFC Championship Game in 2007 and a late blown lead by Manchester City against Real Madrid,” ESPN’s Dan Graziano wrote Friday. “The message, Staley said, was, ‘Okay, guys, you’re not the only ones. So don’t get into this mindset of, ‘Man, we’re a victim to whatever.’ No. You play long enough, you coach long enough, you compete long enough, you’re going to have a tough game like this. But these teams have elite cultures, they have the elite players and coaching, and they have the belief that their way is really special. And here’s the response. Here’s what they did to get over it.'”

The Patriots went up 21-3 after an Asante Samuel pick-six at 9:25 in the second quarter. Peyton Manning led the Colts back in the third quarter, and it was a tight contest through the end. Joseph Addai scored the game-winning touchdown with one minute left in the game, and Tom Brady threw an interception to Marlin Jackson to seal it.

Indianapolis went on to win the Super Bowl, but to Staley’s point, New England bounced back and had a perfect regular season. The Super Bowl didn’t produce the result it wanted, but Bill Belichick and Brady got the perfect response after a forgettable championship game.

Los Angeles will be in for a tougher task being in the same division as the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs, but it is confident it can take the next level.