Chargers' Brandon Staley discusses coaching core of young stars in Justin Herbert, Joey Bosa and Derwin James

LOS ANGELES - When the Los Angeles Chargers hired Brandon Staley to be their next head coach, the first person he told was his wife Amy.

After telling his wife and his family about his career move, the former Rams defensive coordinator made the next priority his young quarterback, Justin Herbert.

"That was a special call," Staley said. "Because it's an important one, and I think what's always been important to me is that your players know that you're thinking about them."  

Brandon and Amy Staley FaceTimed with Herbert on their way to the team facility before getting introduced as the Chargers' new coach via a Zoom conference.

Staley became a highly sought-after coaching candidate in the NFL after leading the league's No. 1 defense with the Rams, but he was a college quarterback. He says his experience on defense will help him prepare for Herbert for what NFL defense will do.

Based on what he's seen from Herbert, Staley says the 22-year-old quarterback's future is promising.

"He's got the makeup to take his game a long way, and is a high capacity and high character guy and that's a deadly combination," Staley said.

Here's the full one-on-one interview between Staley and FOX 11 Sports' Liz Habib:

Staley says he will do the play calling on defense and is working on putting together his coaching staff. With the Rams, their defense featured superstars Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey. On the Chargers, he now has Joey Bosa and Derwin James.

Staley says even his kids know that James is a bit different from the rest.

"It's hard to stand out in this league because everyone is so amazing. But every now and then, you just see a guy that just stands out," Staley said of the former Florida State star.

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