Chargers are making a curious decision with Justin Herbert

Travis Wakeman

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Chargers are making a curious decision with Justin Herbert image

The Los Angeles Chargers drafted Justin Herbert with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. He has never stepped onto the field in a preseason game. However, that will change on Saturday when the Chargers take on the Los Angeles Rams. 

Herbert came into the league during the COVID-19 pandemic and likely would have played in the preseason that year, but there were no games. Last season, he dealt with a nagging foot injury and then you had the Brandon Staley era in between, and he never had Herbert suit up. 

Jim Harbaugh is going to change that, putting his starting quarterback into the game on Saturday. How much he will play remains to be seen, but it likely won't be long. One has to wonder, why now?

Harbaugh may want his offense to get into a rhythm in a real-game setting that it can't do in practice. He may also want his quarterback to shake off some of the offseason rust and be more prepared for the start of the regular season. There could be a number of reasons, but it's a bit of a surprising announcement. 

There is also the fact that the team has some new weapons in the passing game, and Harbaugh may want to see Herbert throwing to guys like Tre Harris and Oronde Gadsden with defenders trying to stop them. 

There is also the matter of the Chargers calling off a planned joint practice with the Rams earlier this week due to Harbaugh not wanting to expose any more players to the chance of injury, as he felt the team had already had too many. He may have wanted to get a look at Herbert against the Rams in that practice, and is using the preseason game as a substitute. 

READ: Keenan Allen has chance to break one of team's top all-time records

Whatever the reason, Herbert will suit up and play against the Rams on Saturday. Kickoff for that game is scheduled at 4:00 pm PT. 

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Travis Wakeman

Travis Wakeman has been covering the NFL since 2012 when he started with Bleacher Report. After reporting about the Broncos there until 2016, he joined the FanSided network as a site expert covering the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers while simultaneously covering the Broncos at Broncos Wire when that site launched. He then took over the Broncos site at FanSided in March 2020 and covered the team there until spring of 2024. A lifelong Broncos fan and fan of the game, Travis is filled with sometimes useless NFL knowledge, but it always serves him well in any trivia contest. You can follow him on Twitter/X @traviswakeman10.