McDaniel: Herbert has ‘exceeded expectation’

New Chargers OC Mike McDaniel reduced Herbert’s throwing frequency in spring practices in an effort to keep Herbert’s arm fresh later in the season. Herbert is instead focused on adjusting his shotgun footwork according to McDaniel’s unorthodox, yet often successful preferences. According to Rhim, this led to Herbert and his receivers frequently being “just out of sync on timing” in team drills. That said, Rhim believes that this is " an expected part of implementing a new offense but something that will need to improve during training camp.” We agree. This is not overly concerning, but it will be worthwhile to follow up on Herbert’s connection with his pass catchers.

Herbert told Popper that his arm feels “pretty good,” but he “can definitely tell that [he is] heading into Year 7.” Veterans often get rest days, so this is nothing to be alarmed about. New Chargers OC Mike McDaniel recently outlined his plan to bring out the best in Herbert. He expanded on that plan with Popper, saying he believes the Chargers “can create more explosive plays in the short area of the field,” while also mitigating the opposing pass rush. Aligning Herbert’s footwork and release with his receivers’ route timing is key. In the past, Herbert has relied on his arm strength to make tight window throws after watching his pass catchers get open. Now, the 28-year-old quarterback is working on “trusting [his receivers], and just throwing it to a spot and letting them go get it.” If it all comes together, Herbert’s per-play efficiency could increase while his pressure-to-sack rate decreases this season.

McDaniel explained Herbert’s strengths and weaknesses to ESPN’s Kris Rhim, noting that Herbert performs efficiently when he either gets the ball out in under 2.4 seconds or less, or “extends plays and launches it down the field.” However, Herbert’s efficiency decreases as the time to throw reaches three seconds. McDaniel plans to “max out those quick throws,” which was a staple in McDaniel’s Dolphins’ offenses, while also allowing Herbert to extend plays at times. That said, McDaniel does not want to make the offense reliant on Herbert’s ability to go above and beyond. He stopped short of explaining that aspect, but McDaniel’s offenses typically feature an efficient, voluminous run game. We expect that to be the case here as well. Herbert finished as the QB10 last year. He has decent odds of working his way up the QB1 tier this year.

McDaniel was scarce on details — not surprising — but promised to rein in the signal-caller a bit. McDaniel added “I think not relying too heavily on Justin’s ability to do above and beyond I think is critical. ... That’ll be one of the first things that we’ll try to do is take a little off his plate.” Reading between the lines, it’s possible that Herbert will be instructed to run a little less in 2026. He took off a career-high 83 times for 498 yards and two touchdowns. His overall fantasy value will probably remain as it was in 2025 — or improve — due to improved schematics. But we’re hoping the Chargers keep the running plays on the table for fantasy purposes and this does not sound like a team that plans to do that after watching him play the final six weeks of the season with a left hand that was recovering from surgery to repair a fracture.

A dejected Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh was non-committal about Roman’s return as OC following LA’s blowout loss to the Patriots on Sunday night — a loss that saw Justin Herbert have one of his worst games as a pro as the Chargers scored just three points. The team’s offensive lineman, including Bradley Bozeman, were circumspect when asked whether Roman should return as the team’s OC in 2026 and call plays. “That’s their call upstairs,” Bozeman told The Athletic. Widely considered a run-first coordinator, Roman’s Bolts offense in 2025 ranked eighth in pass rate over expected, ranking 13th in total pass attempts. It would hardly be a shock if the Chargers moved on from Roman after two mediocre seasons.

The Patriots’ pass rush pressured Herbert from start to finish. It was an unfortunately fitting end to the Chargers’ season. Herbert lost two-time Pro Bowl LT Rashawn Slater to a season-ending patellar tendon injury in August. Third-year OT Joe Alt successfully switched from right tackle to left tackle following Slater’s injury, but Alt missed time after suffering a high-ankle sprain in Week 4. He aggravated it in Week 9 and was forced to undergo season-ending surgery. Chargers backup offensive linemen suffered consequential injuries as well, leading to a career-high 54 sacks for Herbert in his age-27 season. Despite the pass-protection issues, Herbert completed 340-of-512 passes for 3,727 yards, 26 touchdowns and 13 interceptions, and rushed 83 times for 498 yards and two touchdowns. Both his rushing attempts and rushing yardage sums are career highs. He finishes as the QB10 in fantasy scoring and can again be treated as a mid-tier QB1 in 2026, hopefully, with improved offensive line health.

Herbert sat out in Week 18. He told reporters that he took snaps under center today, which is “the earliest he’s done that in any game week” since suffering the injury in Week 13. Taking the week off seems to have helped in his recovery. Herbert should be good to go for his team’s game against the Patriots on Sunday.

Vidal injured his neck in Week 16 and was unable to play in Week 17. He practiced throughout Week 18, including two full sessions to close the week. Forecasting Vidal’s role is difficult, with the Chargers declaring QB Justin Herbert, S Derwin James Jr., RB Omarion Hampton (ankle), S Elijah Molden (hamstring), OLB Tuli Tuipulotu, OT Jamaree Salyer (hamstring) and C Bradley Bozeman (concussion) inactive for Week 18 against the Broncos. The team is clearly trying to preserve its health for the postseason and Vidal has meaningfully contributed to the offense this season. While we tentatively expect him to start, RB Hassan Haskins (concussion) and RB Jaret Patterson could also be regularly involved. Patterson is the backfield’s lone fully healthy player.

Herbert took a beating against the Texans in Week 17 and looked to be in significant pain at the end of that contest, and the Chargers don’t have much to play for in the finale before the playoffs. It’ll likely be Trey Lance starting against Denver, and his dual-threat ability makes his an intriguing — but risky — fantasy play for that finale.

The Texans’ pass rush put hits on Herbert from start to finish, sacking him five times for 35 yards. Herbert was visibly wincing in pain after being sacked at the end of the Chargers’ first drive, bracing his left arm against his body as the punt unit took the field. Despite the physical toll, Herbert willingly scrambled throughout the contest and even dropped Texans CB Derek Stingley en route to a 28-yard gain. Herbert deserves credit for sticking with TE Oronde Gadsden II, linking up with the rookie tight end for a one-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Gadsden had dropped three passes before that, one of them clanging off his hands and into LB Azeez Al-Shaair’s for an interception on the Chargers’ sixth drive. Herbert is a borderline QB1/2 against the Broncos in Week 18.