After a dismal 7-10 record in the 2025 season, Mike McDaniel was fired by the Miami Dolphins, after which he landed in Los Angeles as the Chargers‘ new Offensive Coordinator. Four months in, and the new OC is already bringing major changes to the team in his own way. As the Chargers GM puts it, McDaniel’s methods were anything but ordinary

“Mike put up a wanted reward for a couple of players,” said GM Joe Hortiz during a recent press conference. “So he’s gonna owe a little bit of money to us, you know, since we delivered on both of them.”

Mike McDaniel went and put up “wanted” posters like the ones used in “Cowboy” movies over Joe Hortiz’s office walls. The players McDaniel was aiming to bring in are running back Keaton Mitchell and fullback Alec Ingold. Both were signed by the Chargers during free agency.

“When Alec got released, he came down and planted a wanted poster right on the wall as soon as he was released, and boom, there. It is, I’m like. Okay, okay, okay, you know, we’ll get him. And then literally, Alec got done, and he’s like, he puts the wanted for Keaton,” Hortiz added.

McDaniel convinced Hortiz to sign Keaton Mitchell the same way he did for Alec. Keaton signed with the Ravens in 2023 as an undrafted free agent out of East Carolina and played 28 games for them, averaging 6.3 yards per carry.

In the 2025 season, Keaton Mitchell played 13 games for the Baltimore Ravens and made 59 rushing attempts, covering 341 yards and a touchdown. The 24-year-old contributed in several key moments last year, including special teams returning 27 kickoffs for 747 yards.

For Alec’s part, the reason is fairly simple. The Pro Bowl fullback and Mike McDaniel were part of the Miami locker room for four years. He played 68 games, started 48, and was a key weapon in Miami’s 2023 offense, the NFL’s top unit at the time. The fullback helped the Dolphins rank as the No. 8 offense in the NFL over those four seasons.

Before his time with the Dolphins, Alec also played for the Raiders from 2019 to 2021 after he was signed as an undrafted free agent. In Las Vegas, he helped the team rank #8 in the NFL in total offense in 2020 and #6 in passing offense in 2021.

And considering the injury setbacks they faced last season in the offensive line, Mitchell and Ingold could be valuable additions to the offense, as per McDaniel’s plans for now.

Chargers GM provides an update on their offensive tackles’ recovery

In 2025, offensive tackles Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater both suffered season-ending injuries. While Slater missed the entire 2025 season with a ruptured patellar tendon, Alt played only six games before sustaining a season-ending ankle injury.

These injuries seemingly impacted the Chargers’ overall performance. Their star quarterback, Justin Herbert, struggled to get proper protection. They still managed to end the season with a decent 11-6 record. Now heading into the 2026 season, the concern around their offensive tackles’ recovery still remains.

However, Chargers General Manager Joe Hortiz provided a positive update, “I think they’re ahead of schedule,” before adding, “Both are tracking well, and [I’m] looking forward to seeing them out there.”

The team begins its offseason training next week. And the GM seems quite confident to see both Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater there. However, he also noted that the team will not rush with their recovery as of now.

“I think they’ll be involved in some capacity,” Hortiz added. “Coming back from injuries, you don’t rush anything; there’s no need to rush it. Let them come back, be healthy, the target is for the start of training camp. But I think they’ll be out there getting some work.”

Now, this circles back to the signing of Alec Ingold and Keaton Mitchell. The Chargers signed Keaton Mitchell on a multi-year contract worth $9.25 million and Alec Ingold on a two-year contract worth $7.5 million.

With key offensive linemen returning and two hand-picked specialists added to the mix, McDaniel’s creative approach has already reshaped the Chargers’ offensive identity before the team even takes the field.