Shane Steichen conquered winding road to become Eagles success story

Shane Steichen places his thumbprint on the careers of two Chargers quarterbacks.

During Shane Steichen and Phillip Rivers’ time together, Rivers improved steadily during the journey, and in 2019, Shane earned another promotion, taking the job of offensive coordinator following Ken Whisenhunt’s firing after Week 8. He also took over as the play-caller.

Steichen didn’t do much to improve the Chargers’ woes. They finished the season with a 5-11 record after notching back-to-back winning seasons in 2018 and 2017, but he remained as offensive coordinator in 2020, this time without Philip Rivers. The job was molding veteran Tyrod Taylor and rookie Justin Herbert now, and L.A. had a new feature back, one who many of you are sure to recognize, Austin Ekeler. Having Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, and Hunter Henry in the receiving corps just happened to be an added bonus.

In Steichen’s first season as the full-time offensive coordinator, the Chargers made strides despite the team’s disappointing finish (7-9). They were ranked 18th in total yards and ninth in total points. The Chargers’ passing offense was sixth in yards gained and tenth in touchdowns scored, this despite Justin Herbert only starting 15 games.

The Chargers’ rushing attack finished with a ranking of 18th, and they ranked 27th in rushing touchdowns. That won’t set the world on fire, but it was now seemingly obvious. Shane Steichen had officially placed himself on a few radars, even if the buzz was minimal.