Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert has been the subject of much criticism over the last year, and now, a former teammate of Herbert’s has joined in.

During a recent appearance on the Up & Adams Show, former cornerback Chris Harris Jr. said that Herbert needs to perform better in the clutch to really take his game to the next level.

Harris, who played for the Chargers in 2020 and 2021, named quarterbacks like Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes and Ben Roethlisberger who all have what he called the “clutch factor.”

He went on to say that he thinks new Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh can help bring that out of Herbert and help him be more successful in fourth quarters. He added that he feels Herbert would also benefit from a stronger defense.

Justin Herbert Hasn’t Won Very Much

For as talented as Herbert is, he hasn’t done a whole lot of winning thus far in his career.

The University of Oregon product, who Los Angeles selected with the sixth overall pick of the 2020 NFL Draft, has played four seasons in the NFL and has made just one playoff appearance.

And what did the Chargers do during that one trip to the postseason? They blew a 27-point lead to the Jacksonville Jaguars in a Wild Card Round loss.

Of course, we can’t pin all of this on Herbert. As Harris noted, Los Angeles hasn’t had very good defenses throughout Herbert’s tenure. As a matter of fact, LA ranked 28th in the NFL in defense this past season, which played a major role in the club going 5-12.

That being said, great quarterbacks are supposed to elevate their teams, and Herbert hasn’t really shown he can do that on a consistent basis. After all, he is just 30-32 as a starter and has yet to win a playoff game.

Herbert has certainly posted some impressive numbers. He threw for 4,336 yards, 31 touchdowns and 10 interceptions during his rookie campaign. He then crested 5,000 yards the following season, which resulted in his lone Pro Bowl appearance.

Since that sophomore year, however, Herbert has declined. He finished with 4,739 yards, 25 touchdowns and 10 picks in 2022, and this past season, he totaled 3,134 yards, 20 touchdowns and seven interceptions in 13 games (he missed the last four games of 2023 due to a finger injury).

We’ll see if Justin Herbert can bounce back and have the best year of his career to date under Harbaugh this coming season.

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