EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — There are times when Justin Herbert can put on the cape and be the Superman of the Chargers’ offense, like last week against Denver. He made an incredible touchdown pass and put the team in position to win the game.
But on Sunday against the Giants—with Kayvon Thibodeaux, Brian Burns, and rookie Abdul Carter holding on to the cape—Herbert wasn’t able to be Superman.
The Giants secured their first win of the season with a 21-18 victory over the Chargers, as their pass rush was relentless. They hit Herbert 12 times and sacked him twice.
“He’s taken too many hits,” Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh said. “That’s very concerning. We gotta get better. We gotta put him in a better position.”
The offensive line, already down Rashawn Slater for the season, Mehki Becton with a concussion, and Joe Alt with an ankle sprain, looked pedestrian at best. They couldn’t give Herbert a chance to put the cape on as he did last week against the Broncos.
Instead, they allowed multiple hits, batted passes, and pressure almost every time he snapped the ball. Herbert was pressured 16 times on Sunday.
Who knows how long Alt will be out or when Becton will return, but Herbert can’t continue like this. He has been sacked 12 times and hit 40 times in the first four games of the season.
“It’s part of the game,” Herbert said. “Playing quarterback is you’re going to get hit. You’ve got to be ready to get hit.”
The first quarter was something out of a Stephen King novel for the Chargers.
On their opening drive, Herbert faced 3rd-and-7 from their own 38-yard line. He dropped back and threw a pass to an open McConkey, who dropped it. If caught, it could have been a first down.
The Chargers punted to the Giants.
Quarterback Jaxson Dart got a standing ovation when he entered the game. Starting from their own 11-yard line, he led the Giants all the way down the field. He threw three passes on the drive—all to Malik Nabers. Two were caught for 20 yards, and the third drew a pass interference penalty that resulted in a first down. Dart, along with fellow rookie running back Cam Skattebo, carried the offense up the field with a combined seven runs for 55 yards.
Dart capped the drive with a 15-yard designed quarterback run that sent MetLife Stadium into an eruption of cheers. The Giants jumped out to a 7-0 lead early.
On the next Chargers drive, Herbert faced 3rd-and-19 from his own 26-yard line when he decided to take it himself. Hampton delivered a strong block to free up his quarterback for a 24-yard gain. As they hurried to the line for the next play, Alt hobbled into position, signaling that he was fine. Suddenly, he went down and was carted off after a visit to the blue tent.
On two of the next three plays, Johnston and McConkey dropped passes, forcing the Chargers to punt.
The defense held Dart to just one first down, so the Giants punted the ball back to the Chargers.
Herbert responded with 12 quick yards — an 8-yard pass to Johnston and a 4-yard run from Hampton. But on 2nd-and-10, his pass was batted into the air and intercepted, returned 38 yards until Herbert tracked him down and tackled him two yards short of the end zone. Luckily for the Chargers, the defense held firm, limiting the Giants to a Jude McAtamney 22-yard field goal that extended the lead to 10-0.
The offense finally settled down after a disastrous first quarter. Herbert and Hampton pushed the ball upfield, with the rookie running back contributing 38 total yards on the drive. But it stalled in the red zone after Herbert was flagged for intentional grounding on third down. The penalty forced fourth down, and Cameron Dicker hit a 43-yard field goal to get the Chargers on the board.
The Stephen King reference then flipped to the Giants. They moved the ball quickly, but on 3rd-and-10 at midfield, Dart lofted a pass to Nabers. As he came down, Nabers grabbed his knee and was carted off.
Dart still managed to drive the offense into the red zone, but on 2nd down from the LA 10-yard line, Tuli Tuipulotu sacked him for a three-yard loss. On the next play, heavy Chargers pressure forced Dart to throw the ball into the ground, leading to another McAtamney field goal — this one from 31 yards — to make it 13-3.
Herbert answered with his best drive of the half, hitting Johnston for 18 combined yards, Allen for 14, and then delivering a strike downfield to Johnston between two defenders for a 36-yard touchdown. The Chargers showed signs of life, cutting the deficit to 13-10 at halftime.
Coming out of the break, the Giants moved the ball efficiently with three Skattebo runs for 17 yards and a 10-yard keeper from Dart. But on another scramble attempt, a holding penalty wiped out a big gain. Dart was then evaluated for a concussion, though he later cleared protocol.
Russell Wilson entered the game at quarterback. On his first snap, Tuipulotu — already with four sacks — brought him down again and forced a fumble. Wilson recovered, but two plays later the Giants were forced to punt.
“I wish we had gotten the win because he would have been the player of the week, bro,” James said of Tuipulotu.
The Chargers opened the drive at their own five-yard line. After two quick plays, they faced 3rd-and-1 when Hampton took the handoff and went full rugby mode, carrying two defenders for an 18-yard gain. More offensive mistakes followed on 3rd-and-7, when left guard Zion Johnson and tight end Oronde Gadsden were flagged for back-to-back false starts. On 3rd-and-17, the rush forced Herbert to check down to Hampton, who picked up only eight yards, forcing a punt.
On the next possession, the mistakes continued. Herbert threw a pass intended for McConkey, but as he went to the ground, a flag was thrown. Cornerback Dru Phillips intercepted the ball and returned it to the three-yard line, but officials announced offensive pass interference.
“We had our shot and we didn’t execute,” Herbert said.
Two plays later, Dart pitched a short pass to tight end Theo Johnson for a three-yard touchdown. New York went for two and converted, extending the lead to 21-10.
Three plays into the Chargers’ next drive, they had the ball at their own 46-yard line. Rookie Tre Harris came in motion, Herbert snapped the ball, and Harris delivered a block that freed Hampton. Running behind him, Hampton bounced outside toward the sideline and sprinted 54 yards for a touchdown. The Chargers went for two on a Herbert run and converted, cutting the deficit to 21-18.
Hampton rushed the ball 12 times for 128 rushing yards and one touchdown. He had runs of 54, 18, and 29 yards which makes you think why didn’t he get the ball more?
“In hindsight, lose a game, you always think what you could’ve done different,” Harbaugh said.
These last two performances could be a shift changing with Hampton who has 42 total touches, 294 yards and two touchdowns. They need to continue to feed the rookie.
“Man, he came out of his shell today,” James said. “Big runs. Congrats to him. Let’s clean it up. When guys have performances like that, 128 (yards) full set. I’ll be just doing my job so they can get the glory and get the win.
“We’ll clean it up. If you didn’t have a good game, look at it, take it and be better. If you did have a good game, same mindset. So, we’ll be good, yes, sir.”
The defense came up with a fourth-down stop in the end zone, giving Herbert one last chance. But on 3rd-and-9, the Giants sent a blitz. Brian Burns broke through and sacked Herbert, forcing another punt.
The Chargers ultimately fell short.
“We work on it,” Harbaugh said. “We get better. Get back to work and regroup.”
How they fix this four games into the season will be interesting to see, but Herbert can’t keep taking this kind of punishment. He needs better protection, or games like Sunday will happen more often — especially with Dan Quinn’s Commanders defense looming next week.
“We had our chances to win the game today, as bad as we played today, we still had a chance to win,” James said. “We know what type of team we have. Wasn’t our best game today.”