Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert is having surgery to repair a fracture in his left hand on Monday and he doesn’t plan to miss any time.
Herbert returned to Sunday’s 31-14 win over the Raiders after suffering the injury and head coach Jim Harbaugh said after the game that it was unclear if Herbert will have to miss next Monday’s game against the Eagles. When Herbert took his own turn at the press conference podium, he said he’s not expecting to be anywhere but on the field.
“I’m treating it as if I’m playing on Monday,” Herbert said, via multiple reporters.
Herbert was 15-of-20 for 151 yards, two touchdowns and an interception on Sunday. The Chargers will issue their first injury report for Week 14 on Thursday.
Justin Herbert has a fracture in his non-throwing left hand and will undergo surgery on Monday, Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh said postgame.
It’s unclear if Herbert will miss any time.
The Chargers play the Eagles in Week 14.
Herbert injured his left hand on a 1-yard scramble after Jeremy Chinn slammed the quarterback to the ground. Herbert’s hand banged against the turf.
He threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Quentin Johnston on the next play, giving the Chargers a 7-0 lead after their first possession.
Herbert missed eight plays in the training room, with Trey Lance replacing him, before returning to the game with 11:56 remaining in the second quarter.
He went 15-of-20 for 151 yards with two touchdowns and an interception in the 31-14 win over the Raiders.
Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh loves to run the football, and even without his top two running backs, that’s what he’s doing.
The Chargers ran all over the Raiders today, with Kimani Vidal leading the way with 126 yards and a touchdown, and Jaret Patterson contributing 54 yards and a touchdown as well, as the Chargers shook off a sluggish first half to earn an easy 31-14 win.
Although the Chargers’ top two running backs, Omarion Hampton and Najee Harris, are out with injuries, that doesn’t change their offensive approach. Harbaugh likes to establish the run, and he’s doing it.
Of course, Harbaugh also likes to see quarterback Justin Herbert air it out, but today Herbert suffered a left hand injury that forced him to leave the game briefly, and Harbaugh seemed especially committed to keeping him safe. Herbert completed 15 of 20 passes for 151 yards, with two touchdowns and one interception.
It helped that the Raiders’ offense couldn’t do much of anything. The lone bright spot for the Raiders was the play of their stellar tight end, Brock Bowers, who scored both of their touchdowns. Bowers’ second touchdown pass, on which he somehow got his hand under the ball and kept it off the ground as he fell to the turf in the end zone, was one of the best plays of this NFL season.
Late in the game, as the Raiders’ frustrations boiled over, Maxx Crosby got a 15-yard penalty for shoving Herbert to the ground long after the play was over. Crosby can expect a fine from the league office this week.
At 8-4, the Chargers are in good shape in the playoff race. At 2-10, the Raiders are in a race for the first overall pick in the 2026 NFL draft.
Chargers running back Kimani Vidal wasn’t expected to do much this season. But injuries to running backs Omarion Hampton and Najee Harris have forced the Chargers to turn Vidal into their primary ball carrier.
He’s making the most of that opportunity.
Vidal raced 59 yards for a touchdown at the start of the third quarter today against the Raiders, a career-long run that gave the Chargers a 14-7 lead. Vidal now has 15 carries for 96 yards, less than a minute into the third quarter.
Although it hasn’t been a great game for Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert, who injured his left hand early in the game, Jim Harbaugh would love to keep the ball on the ground and keep feeding Vidal.
Firing Chip Kelly did not fix the Raiders’ offense.
In their first game with Greg Olson taking over for Kelly as the Raiders’ offensive coordinator, the offense was sluggish for most of the first half. But just after the two-minute warning, the Raiders finally got on the board when Geno Smith hit Brock Bowers in the end zone for a touchdown, tying the game 7-7.
Smith has completed five of seven passes for 76 yards with one interception, and that one touchdown pass to Bowers, who has 57 of the Raiders’ 76 receiving yards. Ashton Jeanty has nine carries for 27 yards.
It’s been a dull first half, but it’s a close game in Los Angeles, a game that the Chargers can’t afford to lose as they continue to fight for an AFC playoff berth.
