Chargers fire Brandon Staley, Tom Telesco after 63-21 loss to Raiders
The Los Angeles Chargers were humiliated by the Las Vegas Raiders on Thursday night, losing 63-21, and the franchise has clearly seen enough.
On Friday morning, the organization fired both head coach Brandon Staley and general manager Tom Telesco. Outside linebackers coach Giff Smith will serve as the interim head coach and JoJo Wooden as the interim general manager, NFL Network reported.
At one point, the Chargers trailed 63-7 on Thursday night. Los Angeles is 5-9 this season, good for last in the AFC West, and went a combined 24-24 in the regular season under Staley (2021-23). The team recently lost star quarterback Justin Herbert for the season due to a broken finger.
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Staley's tenure as head coach was mired by brutal late-season losses, as the Chargers lost at the buzzer in overtime of Week 18 of the 2021 season to miss the playoffs — ironically, on the road against the Raiders. Last season, they blew a 27-0 lead to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC wild-card round.
Prior to being named as the Chargers' head coach, Staley was the defensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Rams in 2020.
Telesco had been the Chargers' general manager since 2013 after spending most of his career in the Colts front office. The team was largely competitive during his tenure but did not advance past the divisional round of the playoffs in 11 seasons.
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