COSTA MESA, Calif. (AP) — Anthony Lynn will go into next season with a contract extension and changes to his staff.
The Los Angeles Chargers confirmed Tuesday that the coach had signed an extension.
Lynn has a 27-24 mark in three seasons, including 1-1 in the postseason. He led the Chargers to the playoffs in 2018 but they fell to 5-11 this season. He was going into the upcoming season on the final year of his original contract, but both sides had previously said they were confident something would be worked out.
"I think we have a championship-level coach. I need to do my part and make sure that I don’t let him down. I love what he’s doing,” general manager Tom Telesco said. “I just know that he’s tough, he’s smart, he’s a leader and he represents this organization on and off the field like no one else."
Shane Steichen will remain the offensive coordinator after taking over midway through the season. The Chargers finished 10th in the league in total offense but were fifth in yards per game with Steichen calling plays. Los Angeles' running game also experienced a resurgence under Steichen, averaging 112.1 yards per game, an improvement of nearly 43 yards over the first half of the season.
Lynn said at the end of the season that he thought Steichen did a good job considering when he took over.
“You just assume that it’s his offense, but it’s not his offense. It’s not his terminology,” he said. "I thought he did a good job with what he had. We improved in a lot of different categories under him. I am pleased with Shane.”
Steichen will figure prominently in what will be a huge offseason. Philip Rivers is a free agent and it is likely the franchise could take a quarterback with the sixth overall pick in April's draft.
James Campen has been hired as offensive line coach after spending last season in Cleveland, where he coached the line as well as serving as associate head coach. Campen had been on Green Bay's staff for 12 seasons (2007-18) before going to the Browns. David Diaz-Infante will be the assistant offensive line coach after being with the New York Jets for three years.
Alfredo Roberts, who worked with running backs the past three seasons, will return to coaching tight ends. Mark Ridgley will move to running backs after being an assistant offensive line coach the past two years. Rip Scherer will be a senior assistant after serving as tight ends coach the past two seasons.
The Chargers also announced Addison Lynch will be an assistant defensive backs coach and Ryan Milus will be a quality control assistant for defense.
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