The Chargers are on the upward trajectory in terms of the direction of the organization. Jim Harbaugh came in and established a sound culture within the team last season.
Most importantly, though, the Chargers have the most valuable position in all of sports figured out. That is, the quarterback role. Justin Herbert is a primary reason that Los Angeles should be competitive for the next handful of years.
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While his statistics have been somewhat down the last two seasons, it hasn’t necessarily been his fault. In fact, he played some of the best football of his career as the 2024 season went on.
With some reinforcements made amongst the playmakers group, his numbers should go up a bit in 2025. In Pro Football Focus’ rankings of the 32 starting quarterbacks in the NFL, John Kosko ranked Herbert eighth in the “high-end starters” tier.
Herbert might be the best regular-season quarterback in non-clutch situations. His 91.0 overall grade over the past three seasons ranks sixth, and when excluding playoff performances, his passing grade actually tops Patrick Mahomes.
For Herbert to take that next step in his career, he is going to have to do it on the big stage in the playoffs at some point. That’s what elevated someone like Matthew Stafford into that next category in his impressive career.
It’s hard to believe Herbert still has just one Pro Bowl appearance to his resume. That’s what happens when you’re in the same conference as Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, and Joe Burrow, widely regards as the top-four quarterbacks in the NFL.
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Beyond the four obvious ones, Herbert ranked behind Jalen Hurts, Jayden Daniels, and Stafford (in that order). When it’s all said and done, we’ll likely look back and wonder how Herbert did not make more Pro Bowls in his career.
This article originally appeared on Chargers Wire: Where does Chargers QB Justin Herbert rank amongst the league’s best?