The countdown is on for the Chargers 2025 season opener.

The Chargers will play the Chiefs in Brazil in Week 1 to kick off Year 2 of the Jim Harbaugh Era.

And the Chargers Head Coach laid out his expectations for the upcoming season on Wednesday.

"We're going for the Super Bowl. That's our goal," Harbaugh said. "We're going to do it or die trying. That's how I feel about that."

With that in mind here, are five questions surrounding the Bolts ahead of Week 1.

1. How does the O-line play?

From Day 1 that Harbaugh and Chargers General Manager Joe Hortiz arrived, they touted how important the offensive line was to the culture and belief they had in mind for the Bolts.

Other pieces are important, too, which is why the Chargers spent steady resources this offseason adding playmakers around quarterback Justin Herbert.

The Chargers drafted running back Omarion Hampton in the first round and wide receiver Tre' Harris in the second round before adding wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith and tight end Oronde Gadsden in Round 5.

The Bolts also boosted the offense in free agency with the additions of wide receiver Keenan Allen, running back Najee Harris and tight end Tyler Conklin.

If you're counting, that's seven skill players that Herbert didn't have at his disposal a season ago.

Yet the most important part of the whole equation remains the offensive line, a group Harbaugh has called "the tip of the spear."

The unit suffered a tough blow in training camp when Pro Bowl left tackle Rashawn Slater was lost for the season with a torn patellar tendon.

Slater's absence means Joe Alt has switched to left tackle while Trey Pipkins III now the starter at right tackle.

The interior remains almost unchanged from a season ago, with right guard Mekhi Becton being the only newcomer alongside center Bradley Bozeman and left guard Zion Johnson.

With a week to go ahead of Week 1, all eyes will be on this group each game this season, both in terms of protecting Herbert and helping to get the Bolts run game in a more consistent spot in 2025.

If they cohere quickly, they could help the Bolts get back to the playoffs despite a tougher schedule than a year ago.

But of the group is hit by more injuries or has up-and-down performances, that could hamper progression in Year 2 of Chargers Offensive Coordinator Greg Roman's scheme.

2. How can the safety trio impact the defense?

A year ago, Chargers Defensive Coordinator Jesse Minter said the edge rusher group was the engine of the defense.

But by the end of the 2024 season, it was clear the Chargers safety trio of Derwin James, Jr., Elijah Molden and Alohi Gilman was the propellor of that unit.

The Chargers ended Minter's first season in charge by leading the league with just 17.7 points allowed per game.

The unit also ranked fourth in defensive success rate (43.9 percent) per dropback and were fifth in defensive EPA per dropback (-0.015).

The trio of James, Molden and Gilman were a big reason why.

James' versatility allowed him to lurk in the slot and near the line of scrimmage, leading to an All-Pro season.

Molden and James, meanwhile, patrolled the back end and helped the Chargers allow just 84 explosive pass plays (15-plus yards), a stat that was tied for the seventh-fewest in the league.

Now that the 2025 season upon us, there's a good chance Minter asks more from that group in the months ahead, especially considering the Chargers didn't really settle on starting cornerbacks in training camp.

With a cornerback rotation likely in the secondary, strong play from the safeties could help settle things down early on in the season.

Finally, the AFC West might house the league's best crop of tight ends in Brock Bowers, Travis Kelce and Evan Engram.

Every position group will need to play well for the Chargers to repeat last season's impressive defensive performance. But no group has a chance to make a greater impact than the safeties.

3. Can the Bolts start hot in the division?

We're going to find our real quick what the Chargers are made of.

The Bolts obviously open the season against the Chiefs in Brazil. They then hit the road in Week 2 for a tilt against the Raiders on Monday Night Football before their SoFi Stadium opener in Week 3 against the Broncos.

Jeez.

This marks the first time since the 2022 Saints that a team has opened a season with three consecutive division games.

The last time the Chargers did it? 1988 ... when they opened the season with five division games in a row.

Everybody in the division will be gunning for the Chiefs, who are trying to capture their 10th straight AFC West crown.

But it's likely that no team wants to end that run more than the Chargers, who have been among the most competitive teams against Kansas City in that run.

All but one of the Chargers past seven losses to the Chiefs has been by one possession or less. And four of those defeats have been by four or fewer points.

If the Chargers can get a Week 1 win in Brazil, they'll certainly make an early statement.

Yet they will need to keep the good vibes rolling against the Raiders — who should be much improved and more competitive under Pete Carroll — and the Broncos, who boast perhaps the NFL's best defense.

We'll know a lot about the Chargers by the end of September.

If the Chargers can be 2-1 (or even 3-0), they could be in the early driver's seat to contend for the AFC West crown.

4. Who emerges on defense?

Think of this one as the recent Daiyan Henley scenario.

Henley entered the 2024 season as a new full-time starter and established himself as one of the NFL's top young players.

The heartbeat in the middle of the Chargers defense, the expectation is now that Henley could ascend to league-wide stardom in 2025.

So, who emerges in his place this season?

Tarheeb Still and Cam Hart are strong candidates, but again, the cornerback rotation doesn't appear to be crystalized just yet.

Tuli Tuipilotu is also a name to watch but he feels established enough, even though he is going into his first season as a full-time starter opposite Khalil Mack.

Newcomes Nikko Reed and Marlowe Wax are also on our list, but the pair of undrafted rookie free agents aren't likely to start right away.

Instead, we're going with rookie third-round pick Jamaree Caldwell.

The defensive lineman doesn't play the sexiest position and won't get a ton of accolades for simply doing his job in the trenches.

But the former Oregon (and Houston) standout impressed coaches and teammates alike this summer with his ability to stuff the run while also showing off some pass rush juice, too.

If Caldwell establishes himself as a starter early in the season, he could be among the Bolts key defensive pieces for the future.

5. How do the Chargers handle December?

We mentioned above that the team's September slate will be revealing.

So, too, will the Chargers schedule in December.

The Bolts have a Week 12 bye before playing the Raiders at home in Week 13 on November 30.

Then the gauntlet begins with a home game against the Eagles, a road game in Kansas City, a road game in Dallas and a home game against Houston.

If you're counting, that's the past three Super Bowl champions, including the teams that met in last year's title game.

It's the Cowboys, who are chock full of talent and draw national eyeballs every day of the year.

And it's Houston, the team that knocked the Bolts out of the playoffs in convincing fashion a year ago.

If (or probably when) the Chargers are in the playoff race as the calendar turns to December, they will certainly have to earn their ticket to the dance with a grueling December slate.