The two passes Justin Herbert completed to rookie Ladd McConkey on the Chargers’ final drive were noteworthy not because of their precision or degree of difficulty. What made them extraordinary were the events that preceded them.
Herbert had missed on each of his previous seven pass attempts. He’d lost a fumble. The Chargers had blown a 21-point lead to the Cincinnati Bengals.
With the Chargers looking as if they were “Chargerging” again, how did Herbert maintain the confidence to throw the ball over Bengals cornerback Mike Hilton and into the hands of McConkey for a 28-yard gain?
How was he able to remain composed enough to deliver a 27-yard strike to McConkey two plays later, this time with a Bengals lineman about to drive him into the turf at SoFi Stadium?
For that matter, how could he work up the nerve to make a promise to safety Derwin James Jr. before taking the field for that drive?
“He said he was going to go out and make the play,” a smiling James later recalled, “and then he went out and did it.”
Herbert’s passes to McConkey moved the Chargers into field-goal range and set up a 29-yard touchdown run by J.K. Dobbins that marked the difference in their 34-27 victory over the Bengals.
Herbert did more than improve the Chargers to 7-3. He spared them the kind of late-game disaster for which their franchise is known, from chatter that not even coach Jim Harbaugh could defeat the Chargers Curse.
“Start the MVP talk,” Dobbins said.
If how the game ended displayed Herbert’s resilience, the first half was a demonstration of the 26-year-old quarterback’s dominance.
Opposite of Herbert was the quarterback who was selected first in the same draft in which Herbert was selected sixth, Joe Burrow. Catching passes from Herbert before the game as he customarily does, Harbaugh noticed something was different on this day.
“Every ball, tight,” Harbaugh said. “It was coming out so good, so accurate, just could feel it and see it that he was going to have a big night for himself.”
The Chargers went three-and-out on their opening drive, but scored touchdowns on their next three possessions.
Herbert found tight end Will Dissly for a 29-yard touchdown. He hit Quentin Johnston for a 26-yard score. Herbert’s 31-yard scramble set up a one-yard touchdown run by Dobbins.
In addition to passing for 297 yards, Herbert finished as the Chargers’ rushing leader with 65 yards.
With his team taking a 24-6 lead at halftime, Herbert looked as if he was ready to compete with Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes for the unofficial designation as the league’s best quarterback.
Everything suddenly changed in the third quarter.
The Chargers punted five times in the second half. They lost a ball on the first play of the fourth quarter when Herbert fumbled at the end of a seven-yard run. Herbert missed receivers high, he missed them low, and he missed them wide.
“I think it’s just up to us to execute,” Herbert said. “We have to keep doing a better job of executing on third down. There are a couple of balls that I’d love to have back and rethrow.”
Before the winning drive, Herbert had completed only five of 19 passes in the second half.
Overcoming such a loss of rhythm to lead the team to victory only intensified his teammates’ admiration for him.
“He’s a leader, and it doesn’t really matter what happens in the flow of the game,” linebacker Daiyan Henley said. “With a leader like that, man, the type of team we have, it doesn’t matter how the game goes, we’re going to come out on top.”
Harbaugh called Herbert by the nickname “Beast” last week, but edge rusher Joey Bosa revealed the coach has at least one other moniker for him: “The Cleaner.”
“He cleans up the mistakes of everyone else,” edge rusher Joey Bosa said.
As usual, Harbaugh rambled on and on about his on-field leader but failed to explain how Herbert made the plays he made on the final drive.
“I don’t know exactly how to say it — yet,” Harbaugh said. “I’ll get back to you on that.”
Harbaugh will have plenty of time to do so, as Herbert figures to give him plenty of opportunities to talk about him.
The story of Herbert is no longer about what he can be. The story of Herbert is now about what he is.