Justin Herbert claps back as critics pile on after Rams loss

The Los Angeles Chargers took a gamble this offseason.

By bringing in Mike McDaniel as offensive coordinator, they moved away from the formula that had led the team to solid regular-season finishes but no playoff success in the first two seasons under head coach Jim Harbaugh.

It was reasonable to think that Greg Roman had to go.

Although Roman's scheme played into Justin Herbert's strengths, his ability to dial up complex and consistently dynamic routes for the team's receivers simply wasn't high enough to expect anything other than a middling offense out of him — even with solid protection.

The bet was that McDaniel's West Coast-style scheme could provide that.

But that schematic shift also brought Los Angeles away from what Herbert does best.

Instead, the team asked him to run much of the same anticipatory passing game that Tua Tagovailoa ran in Miami, operating within an entirely different offensive structure.

The results, obviously, have been disastrous.

Unless there's a major turnaround over the remainder of the regular season, McDaniel should be gone this offseason.

But that can't be the end of it for the Chargers.

As they chart a path beyond 2026, the focus — from the offensive scheme to the personnel choices — needs to return to maximizing the talent that Herbert has.

There's simply no other path for Los Angeles to return to a competitive stature.

Justin Herbert is still the center of the Chargers organization — and any hope they have of righting this ship lies in him.

HERBERT'S NUMBERS THIS SEASON

Herbert, by the numbers, has been perhaps the worst quarterback in the league this season.

Through seven games, he's completed just 131 passing attempts for 1,398 yards and five touchdowns.

He's tacked on 10 interceptions on top of that.

His turnover-worthy play rate has skyrocketed to 6%, nearly triple his career high.

It's clear that he simply isn't comfortable operating in the sort of offense that McDaniel is trying to run.

He's forcing throws into non-existent windows.

His ability to read defenses and work through his progressions has taken a turn for the worse even as the season has gone on.

Of course, it's not possible to entirely extricate Herbert from the blame for how this season has gone.

But it's worth asking: if McDaniel weren't here, would we expect Herbert to be among the league's top quarterbacks again?

The answer is likely yes.

Herbert has been at his best this season — that is to say, remotely viable under center — when he's had to operate out of structure.

That's when opposing pass rushers have closed in and he's been able to improvise and use his natural talent.

THE QUENTIN LAKE EXCHANGE

Rams safety Quentin Lake went on a podcast earlier this week to criticize Herbert's play during this past Sunday's game, when Herbert threw two interceptions in the Chargers' 24-9 loss.

Lake had one of the interceptions, a poorly thrown pass intended for tight end Charlie Kolar.

"I mean, he was throwing deli meat out there," Lake said. "He's seeing ghosts."

Herbert responded with a shrug.

"I haven't looked into it, I haven't heard anything about it," Herbert said.

When pressed further about the critical comments of an NFL peer, Herbert added: "We're just focused on what's going on in this building, playing football and doing all we can and doing our best to go and put our best effort. That's all that matters and anything outside of that is out of our control."

Harbaugh had a similarly measured response when the Lake comments came up earlier in the press conference.

Asked directly whether he sees Herbert struggling with the ghosts that Lake described, Harbaugh didn't flinch.

"As far as anybody's opinion, I don't see that. Everybody's entitled to their opinion. It's not what I see," Harbaugh said.

HERBERT'S MINDSET

Herbert said he hasn't changed his usual routine simply because things aren't going well.

He still enjoys a life dominated by football.

He said he arrives at the Chargers' practice facility early and leaves late.

There's little time for anything but practicing and watching videos — football videos, that is.

"I think I have the greatest job in the world," Herbert said.

"I get paid to play football, and it is the best job in the world. I think I'm the luckiest guy in the world to be able to play football in Southern California with this team and with this group of guys. I love football and doing what I do."

For the record, Herbert signed a five-year contract extension in 2023 potentially worth $262.5 million, of which $133.7 million is fully guaranteed, per the website overthecap.com.

His team-high base salary of $24 million for this season is more than twice as high as the next highest salary on the roster.

"I have the greatest job in the world," Herbert repeated.

Having the type of unproductive, uncharacteristic season Herbert is having is certain to invite criticism.

Not that he's paid any attention to it, but there's been chatter that McDaniel has ruined Herbert, that the Chargers should trade Herbert, that his career has stalled.

THE CULTURAL WALL

There's a reason coaches and players in the NFL talk this way, and it's not just cliché — it's functional.

Building a cultural wall around the facility is one of the most underrated forms of team maintenance.

When a franchise is struggling offensively, the last thing the quarterback needs is to be processing real-time ridicule from peers while also processing a defensive blitz.

The strategy requires genuine psychological discipline.

It means resisting the natural human urge to respond or defend.

Peer ridicule in professional sports carries a different weight than media criticism — it comes with credibility, with insider knowledge, and with the implicit message that your peers have already rendered their verdict.

So how do Herbert and the Chargers handle it?