Jim Harbaugh has spent plenty of time praising Justin Herbert, calling the Chargers quarterback a generational talent and predicting he’ll end up as the best quarterback ever. On Monday, though, after Los Angeles fell to 0-3 with a 24-16 loss to the Bills, Harbaugh’s message was stripped down to two blunt words: “Be better.”
He said it twice when he was asked about Herbert’s decision-making in Buffalo. Harbaugh did broaden the blame beyond his quarterback, pointing to himself, the quarterbacks coach and coordinator Mike McDaniel. But the tone still landed hard, because this is not how Harbaugh has handled Herbert before.
That’s what made Monday feel different. Earlier in the season, when things went sideways, the criticism usually found another target.
An interception against the Raiders was pinned on a receiver. A sack in the opener was blamed on a wrong route rather than the protection call.
Just a week before the loss to Buffalo, Harbaugh said he wouldn’t change anything about Herbert.
Now the numbers are forcing a tougher conversation. Through three weeks in McDaniel’s offense, Herbert has thrown more interceptions than touchdowns and is completing under 60 percent of his passes, both career lows. His passer rating sits in the low 70s, well below the level he’s maintained for most of his career.
The Bills game laid the issue bare. Herbert’s only interception came on a throw into the end zone with the Chargers up three and in position to put the game away. Buffalo defenders also dropped two passes that should have become interceptions, and Los Angeles still managed to blow a 10-0 lead and lose to a team that committed five turnovers.
When the other side keeps handing over chances and the game still slips away, the quarterback is going to be at the center of it.
Harbaugh did not lay everything at Herbert’s feet. He said the staff is looking at the scheme, the execution and the personnel, and that when it comes to simplifying McDaniel’s system, “all options are open.” He also said he still trusts McDaniel to get the offense straightened out.
Even so, Harbaugh made the other obvious point: a quarterback with Herbert’s experience has to protect the football no matter what’s being called.
Herbert didn’t push back. After the game, he said the turnaround “starts with me.”
A winless September doesn’t end anything by itself, but it does shrink the margin for error. The Chargers head into next week’s game against Seattle with Herbert’s every read under the microscope.
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