The Jim Harbaugh era is underway in Los Angeles and starts with a win.
Coming off a national championship at Michigan, the Chargers new head coach was brought in to build a culture and identity with one of the NFL's worst teams last season.
It took all of one game for Harbaugh to make a statement, simplifying the game to lead Los Angeles to a 22-10 win over the Raiders in his debut.
Learn more about Harbaugh's first win back at the NFL level below.
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Jim Harbaugh record in season openers
With the win over the Raiders, Harbaugh extended his career-long perfect record in NFL season openers to 5-0. His other four season-opening wins all came with the 49ers from 2011-14.
Harbaugh is one of three coaches in NFL history to have an undefeated record in Week 1, joining Potsy Clark (8-0-2) and Raymond Berry (5-0).
Best record by a head coach in season openers in NFL history
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) September 9, 2024
Potsy Clark 8-0-2
Jim Harbaugh 5-0
Raymond Berry 5-0 pic.twitter.com/tEOGoDn70t
After leading Michigan to a perfect 15-0 record last season, it has been a long time since Harbaugh lost a football game. His last loss was when the Wolverines fell to TCU in the College Football Playoff on Dec. 31, 2022.
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How Jim Harbaugh impacted Chargers gameplan
Harbaugh wasted no time instilling his football principles on the Chargers franchise.
Under head coach Brandon Staley, Los Angeles took a lot of chances with a gun-slinging offense and mediocre defense. Harbaugh made sure to simplify the game, heavily relying on the run while hanging their hat on defense.
| Season | Rush Att/G | Rush Yds/G | Pass Att/G | Pass Yds/G |
| 2023 | 27.5 | 96.6 | 37.2 | 232.8 |
| 2024 (one game) | 27 | 176 | 26 | 144 |
Last season, the Chargers averaged roughly 37 pass attempts to 28 rush attempts per game, although constantly playing from behind certainly attributed to that. They ranked 13th in the NFL in passing yards per game but 25th in rushing yards per game. They also allowed the 24th most points per game (23.4).
In one game under Harbaugh, Los Angeles looked like a different team.
The Chargers had 27 rush attempts to 26 pass attempts, making life easy for star quarterback Justin Herbert. Of course, building a lead resulted in a run-heavy second half but the Chargers still looked to establish the ground game more than they did at any point last season.
J.K. Dobbins planted his stake as RB1, rushing for 135 yards and one touchdown on 10 carries. His counterpart, Gus Edwards, had 26 yards on 11 carries.
Even though Herbert only finished with 144 yards and one touchdown, he had zero turnovers and the Chargers won the game. The rising star quarterback would take that result over throwing for 300-plus yards in a loss any day.
On defense, Los Angeles held the Raiders to 10 points and under 300 total yards. All last season, it only held two teams under 10 points and five teams under 300 total yards.
For good measure, Harbaugh even ran on the field to help break up a fight in the second half, showing his trademark grit and hands-on approach.
Here's the fight between Chargers and Raiders players#LVvsLAC pic.twitter.com/AOqR8O7nOz
— crunchypuddle (@crunchypuddle1) September 8, 2024
Granted, Las Vegas isn't expected to be a world-beating team this season, but it's still a strong start to the Harbaugh era with the Chargers, getting the team back over .500 for the first time since the 2022 season.
Regardless of how the rest of the season goes, it's clear this is already "Harbaugh's team," and it's a new era in L.A.
