Justin Herbert keeps drawing attention for the arm talent that made him one of the NFL’s most gifted quarterbacks, and former All-Pro safety Donte Whitner thinks the Los Angeles Chargers star is set up for something bigger in 2026.
Whitner went on ESPN’s First Take on Friday and made a bold call: Herbert can play at an MVP level while pushing the Chargers into championship territory.
“He's going to get the easier throws of his career,” Donte Whitner said on First Take Friday. “It's all based on motions, shifts, and deception. He doesn't have to drop back 30 times a game and have defenders all over him and forcing him into coverage.”
“I expect Justin Herbert to be an MVP-caliber performer this year. And if they start off hot, they are going to get the toughness from Jim Harbaugh. If Herbert is trusting his philosophy, they can get all the way to the big one and can win it.”
The idea behind the prediction is pretty simple: Herbert has never been the issue. His talent has been obvious.
"I expect Justin Herbert to be a MVP caliber performer this year." @DonteWhitner shares his expectations for Justin Herbert for this year 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/5BMRn01rjK
— First Take (@FirstTake) August 28, 2026
The bigger question has always been whether the Chargers could give him the right coaching, healthy protection and enough consistency to turn that talent into real postseason success. Mike McDaniel is expected to unlock it.
Whitner’s case is that the new-look offense could make Herbert’s job cleaner without taking away the edge that makes him dangerous in the first place. If that balance holds, Los Angeles could finally have the kind of season where everything clicks.
An MVP would still mean Herbert puts together an exceptional year, but Whitner believes the setup is there for him to do it.
And Herbert gave a reminder of what that ceiling looks like Thursday night in the preseason finale against the Los Angeles Rams, when he launched a 65-yard touchdown pass to Quentin Johnston early in the first quarter.
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