RM: Could this reporter, who is unknown to me, really have solid sources
for all this?

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/39161026/los-angeles-chargers-coach-brandon-staley-fired-2023-players-speak

Why a disconnected Chargers team was Brandon Staley's downfall

Kris Rhim, ESPN
Dec 22, 2023, 06:00 AM ET

THE UNRAVELING OF the Los Angeles Chargers began in Jacksonville,
Florida, on Jan. 14.

Coach Brandon Staley had led an injury-ravaged team to wins in four of
its last five games during the 2022 season, securing a playoff matchup
with the Jaguars on that Saturday evening. When the Chargers bolted to a
27-0 lead with just over four minutes remaining in the second quarter,
it appeared the late-season surge would continue.

Staley had the upper hand on Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson,
outscheming the ex-Eagles' Super Bowl winner and rendering the EverBank
Stadium crowd stone silent. Staley, who called the defensive plays,
watched as his defense forced four turnovers in the first 30 minutes.

Then it all fell apart.

Los Angeles' offense, powered by Pro Bowl quarterback Justin Herbert,
stalled. Staley's defense, previously so opportunistic, had no answers
for Trevor Lawrence and the Jags. As the unit collapsed, Staley could be
heard screaming at linebackers coach Michael Wilhoite. Staley believed
Wilhoite's group had made an error on a big Jacksonville play. Wilhoite
countered that Staley had made a "dumbass playcall" and that the
linebackers had done their job, according to team sources who witnessed
the sideline exchange.

The Jaguars would defeat the Chargers 31-30 in what was the
third-largest comeback in playoff history. It was the latest chapter in
a book full of disappointments by this Chargers franchise.

When Staley entered the locker room -- facing a grieving team in
disbelief -- he told them, in part, "games like this happen in the NFL."
The message annoyed some players, especially those who had played on
other teams and experienced postseason success. To some, it felt like
Staley was shifting ownership of the collapse off the squad -- and
himself -- as a regular occurrence, team sources said.

One team source described the Jacksonville game as reflective of
Staley's lack of accountability -- and the moment he began to lose
players -- pointing to the screaming match with Wilhoite, who was
subsequently fired.

"Losing is terrible," team owner Dean Spanos said last March as he
reflected on that playoff game. "But the way you lose sometimes is even
worse."

Less than a year later, in front of a prime-time audience on "Thursday
Night Football," the Chargers suffered another historic loss. The 63-21
defeat came against the Las Vegas Raiders, a team without its All-Pro
running back, and led by an interim coach, general manager and a
fourth-round rookie quarterback. The Chargers were without Herbert, lost
for the year with a broken finger on his throwing hand, and receiver
Keenan Allen.

When Staley stood before the team in the visitor's locker room at
Allegiant Stadium, there was an element of déjà vu. A team source said
Staley repeated the "games like these happen in the NFL" line, a message
he later repeated to the media.

This time, the Spanos family would not spare Staley, firing him and
general manager Tom Telesco the next morning. It was the first time the
organization had parted ways with a coach during the season since it
dismissed Kevin Gilbride in 1998.

"At a certain point with him it just felt like words didn't matter," one
team source said.

Staley's .500 record over three seasons reflects a team that flirted
with success as often as it did with disaster.

He leaves behind what multiple team sources described as a disconnected
locker room -- created, in part, by a coach who often got in his own way
-- and a roster full of aging stars, putting the team's future in question.

"Essentially, when you fire a guy, you're saying that there's a guy out
there right now who is going to set our team up with better chances to
win the Super Bowl in their second or first year with a brand new team
than Staley would in his third or fourth year or fifth year?" a team
source said. "I'm not saying it's impossible. I just feel like it's
unlikely. There are more issues here."
Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Quentin Johnston, who was drafted
with the No. 21 pick in this year's draft, has 13 receptions for 356
yards in 14 games this season. Jordon Kelly/Icon Sportswire

STALEY WAS A departure from the typical NFL head coach, according to
multiple team sources. He wasn't overly strict about timeliness, didn't
lose his temper and was receptive to input from the team's leadership
council and assistants.

To wide receiver Quentin Johnston, Staley was the support system he
needed in a tumultuous rookie season.

Johnston, the Chargers first-round pick, had his lowest moment of the
season in Week 11 against the Green Bay Packers. Johnston dropped a
wide-open pass that would have put the Chargers in field goal range with
23 seconds left in the game. The Packers won 23-20 and the Chargers fell
to 4-6.

Johnston was visibly upset in the locker room and said there was "no
excuse" for the miscue.

After the game, Staley let loose with a tirade aimed at reporters, who
questioned the coach's confidence in himself and his defense. Staley
called Johnston into his office the next day and pulled up examples of
the criticism he'd been receiving.

Staley's message for Johnston was to "block out the noise" -- as Staley
planned to do -- because the Chargers believed in him.

"That was honestly real big for me," Johnston told ESPN. "Especially
just being my first year and honestly being my first time going through
something like that in sports. I have always been real consistent. I
never really had just a super bad game, like the ones I've been having,
so for him to just come and say that as a head coach, that meant a lot
to me."

Staley often defended players like Johnston in news conferences, giving
long complimentary answers about them. He has called outside linebacker
Khalil Mack a "Hall of Famer" and "one of the best edge rushers of this
generation," and rookie linebacker Tuli Tuipulotu a "baller."

When Johnston suffered a rib injury against the Baltimore Ravens in Week
12 and didn't return despite being cleared by trainers, Staley snapped
at reporters who asked if Johnston had been benched.

"It's not because of a lack of confidence. It's not because of any other
part of your imagination," Staley said. "Quentin will be out there if
he's able to be out there."

Staley sought out Johnston on the practice field, often calling him a
"bull" because of his 6-foot-4, 215-pound frame and ability to gain
yards after the catch that was on display at TCU. Those moments were
always a boost of confidence for Johnston, who says he needed it this
season.

"Despite the ups and downs, I feel like all in all, he was a great
person just for me to go to when I was just feeling overwhelmed,"
Johnston said. "And I feel like with his advice, I've been doing pretty
good with blocking everything out.

"I'm not a real sentimental person. I'm not a real 'talk about my
feelings' type of person, but once he started breaking down stuff to me,
just the reassurance that he still believed in me as a player meant a
lot to me."

But not every player inside the Chargers locker room curried Staley's
favor in the same way as Johnston, who was Staley's most recent
first-round pick.

OVER STALEY'S TENURE, tension mounted between players who team sources
described as "Staley's guys," and others who predated Staley or had
fallen out of his favor.

Staley alienated some players, according to team sources. For a few,
birthday announcements were a clear indication of where they stood.

In a team meeting on Nov. 16, Staley projected birthday graphics for
linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr., defensive tackle Jerrod Clark and guard
Jordan McFadden on a video screen, but only said happy birthday to
Murray in the meeting, according to a team source who was present. After
practice two days later, Staley said happy birthday to offensive guard
Zion Johnson in front of the team. Multiple players mentioned that it
was also rookie linebacker Daiyan Henley's birthday, to which Staley
replied, "and Daiyan, too," in a dismissive way, before quickly wrapping
up practice, according to team sources.

"Guys didn't feel included; he didn't make it feel like a team," one
team source said of Staley. "He kind of made it feel like a fraternity
house. Certain guys are in the frat, certain guys aren't."

Last season, Mack began organizing team dinners each Friday with the
defense to build fellowship, often inviting offensive players to join.
Mack still holds these weekly dinners, but the togetherness hasn't
extended across the team.