The Los Angeles Chargers are betting that Mike McDaniel can unlock a new version of Justin Herbert, and the early buzz around that idea is enough to get fans leaning in.
Herbert already has the kind of résumé that puts him in rare air. He’s widely viewed as a top-five passer at his best, has a 5,000-yard season on his ledger, and has piled up plenty of other accolades along the way.
The bigger story is that the Chargers have not always put him in the best position to keep climbing. Between uneven personnel choices and a long parade of offensive coordinators, the organization has spent too much time trying to catch up around its quarterback.
Greg Roman, the last man in the role, was so far removed from the modern NFL that even Jim Harbaugh had to move on.
Now the expectation is that McDaniel can help change the trajectory.
One of the biggest offseason points of emphasis has been McDaniel pushing Herbert to alter his footwork in certain looks so he can get the ball out quicker. That might sound like a small tweak, but ESPN’s Kris Rhim noted that McDaniel used the same approach with Tua Tagovailoa and helped produce Tagovailoa’s only Pro Bowl season while the Dolphins finished first in the NFL in total offense in 2023.
Rhim also explained that McDaniel was part of the Atlanta staff that made a similar adjustment with Matt Ryan.
McDaniel put it plainly to Rhim: "You're throwing a five-yard out route, how can we get 12 on that? Well, our timing, based on our footwork and when we're able to throw, has a big portion in the overall maximization of that five-yard out route."
Of course, Ryan and the Falcons reached that level for plenty of reasons beyond one coaching tweak. But that’s exactly why the Chargers are so intrigued. They’re looking at a coordinator who has already helped quarterbacks reach a higher gear, and they’re hoping Herbert is next.
That hope is easy to understand. Herbert’s talent has never been the question. With McDaniel now overseeing a rebuilt offensive line and a group of weapons that has never really been pushed to elite status, the setup finally looks different.
And if the pattern holds, Herbert could be the next quarterback added to McDaniel’s growing list of success stories.
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