The LA Chargers seemed well on their way to another heartbreaking loss Sunday night football against the Cincinnati Bengals. Then the Chargers remembered Jim Harbaugh was the head coach and rewrote the narrative with a nail-biting 34-27 win.

Harbaugh completely changed the culture of the entire organization less than a full year after being hired by the Bolts. Before the Chargers played a single game under Harbaugh, it was clear things were different and fans were reminded of this reality Sunday night.

Granted, the Chargers suffered a bad kick for once, when Evan McPherson missed two straight field goals late in the fourth quarter. While that undoubtedly played a role, the fact is that the Chargers were able to weather the storm because of their head coach.

Don’t believe us? Just listen to one of the team’s most prominent superstars, Joey Bosa. Bosa admitted after Sunday’s win that in the past there would have been a sense of doubt when the bottom gave way. Under Harbaugh, that sense of doubt has seemingly disappeared.

Harbaugh creates a winning culture wherever he coaches. While culture alone doesn’t win football games, a team can win in losing games, as the Chargers did against the Bengals.

Bosa isn’t the only Chargers player to recognize this reality, either. Sophomore linebacker Daiyan Henley told reporters that this year’s Chargers team is different from years past.

“This is a different team. This is not what the Chargers have been, this is not what the fans have come to expect.”

– Daiyan Henley

Henley spent just one year with the Chargers without Harbaugh and that was enough to know what things were like back in the day. In fact, this isn’t the first time Henley has spoken out about the differences within this Chargers team, as the sophomore has previously taken subtle shots at Brandon Staley’s defense.

Whether it was Staley or the mediocre head coaches before him, the Chargers built a reputation on finding new ways to lose games. And while every game is different, that reputation is starting to take its toll on players.

Instead of having the confidence of a winning organization like the New England Patriots or Kansas City Chiefs, this reputation creates self-doubt. And in key moments, this results in the Chargers desperately trying not to lose games instead of the team actually trying to win them.

This doesn’t mean the Chargers will win every throw from here on out. The Chargers will lose a game they should win and there will be heartbreaking losses with Harbaugh as head coach.

But as Bosa said, there won’t be a lack of confidence from those in the locker room because they know firsthand that Harbaugh has rewritten the culture. That confidence will show up on the field and will hopefully lead to the Chargers finally achieving the ultimate goal.