The Chargers may have lost to the Bucs 38-31, but that doesn’t mean the losing quarterback didn’t shine. Justin Herbert had himself a hell of a game finishing the contest 20-25 for 290 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception.
Tampa head coach Bruce Arians praised Herbert despite throwing an interception with the game on the line:
“I told Anthony after the game, You’ve got a great one. . . . That looked like Mahomes, where we had an all-out blitz, and he just kept retreating. Then he threw a dime down the field. For rookies to make plays like that, you know they’re special,” Arians said, via Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times.
The Mahomes praise may have gone a bit too far, but there’s no denying that Herbert has done some good things. I have a rule when it comes to quarterbacks. Let’s not go crazy over rookie seasons before the scouting report comes out. Herbert had a significant issue in college, which was an inability to progress through reads.
Herbert looks good but let’s pump the brakes a bit. Baker Mayfield broke the rookie touchdown record, yet he does not look like someone who should have been selected first overall. Robert Griffin III won rookie of the year over Andrew Luck and Russell Wilson. Let’s let this play out for 12 starts or so.
The good news is that Herbert is showing some great traits. Herbert has always been cool, calm, and collected. It looks like he’s not struggling to face pressure, which is a positive. He’s also got plenty of juice on his ball, which we knew coming out of college. The only thing we know for sure is that Tyrod Taylor isn’t getting his job back.
