Justin Herbert

Justin Patrick Herbert (born March 10, 1998) is an American professional football quarterback for the Los Angeles Chargers in the NFL. He played college football at Oregon, winning the 2019 Pac-12 Championship, and the Chargers chose him with the sixth overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft.

Herbert took over as the Chargers' starting quarterback during the second game of his rookie season and held the role for the rest of the year. He set multiple rookie records, including most touchdown passes and most 300-yard games, earning AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. In 2021, he became the first quarterback in Chargers history to surpass 5,000 passing yards and earned a Pro Bowl selection. Before the 2023 season, he signed a five-year, $262.5 million contract extension.

Herbert was born in Eugene, Oregon, on March 10, 1998, and attended Sheldon High School, where he played football, basketball, and baseball. A broken leg during the third game of his junior year complicated his recruitment. As a senior, he threw for 3,130 yards and 37 touchdowns, rushed for 543 yards and 10 touchdowns, and was named first-team All-State and Southwest Conference Offensive Player of the Year. Northern Arizona, Portland State, and Montana State offered scholarships, with Nevada and Oregon later extending the only FBS offers. He committed to Oregon in October 2015. In high school, he co-founded the Sheldon High School Fishing Club and served as its president.

In 2016, Herbert entered his true freshman season as the backup to Dakota Prukop. He became Oregon's first true freshman starting quarterback since Chris Miller in 1983 when the Ducks faced Washington on October 8. Though he tied or set single-game school records for total offensive yards (512), passing yards (489), and touchdown passes (6), the Ducks finished 4–8, their worst record in 25 years, missing a bowl game for the first time in over a decade. After the fifth game, Herbert became the starter, throwing for 1,936 yards, 19 touchdowns, and four interceptions in eight starts. He led a comeback win over No. 11 Utah, with the team scoring four touchdowns in the final 15:27 to erase a 14–3 deficit. On the final drive, he completed 6 of 9 passes for 63 yards, including a 17-yard game-winning touchdown with two seconds left.

In 2017, under new head coach Willie Taggart, Herbert helped the Ducks start 4–1 while transitioning from the "Blur Offense" to the "Gulf Coast Offense." He fractured his collarbone against California on September 30. Without him, Oregon lost four of five games, and the offense dropped from 49.2 points per game to 15.0. Herbert returned to win the final two regular-season games, making the Ducks bowl eligible. They lost the Las Vegas Bowl 38–28 to Boise State after Taggart left for Florida State. In eight starts, Herbert went 6–2, completing 139 of 206 passes (67.5%) for 1,983 yards, 15 touchdowns, and five interceptions, while rushing 44 times for 183 yards and five touchdowns. He earned first-team CoSIDA Academic All-American honors with a 4.08 GPA in biology.

In 2018, Herbert entered his third season as an early Heisman candidate under a third head coach, Mario Cristobal, and learned a third offensive scheme—the pistol offense. He led the Ducks to a 9–4 record and a Redbox Bowl win, finishing with 3,151 passing yards, 29 passing touchdowns, and two rushing touchdowns. His 31 total touchdowns ranked second in the Pac-12 behind Gardner Minshew. He made the Pac-12 All-Academic first-team.

Despite being projected as a high draft pick, Herbert returned for his senior season in 2019. He guided Oregon to a 12–2 record, including a Rose Bowl win where he ran for three touchdowns and was named Offensive MVP. He posted career highs of 3,471 passing yards, 32 passing touchdowns, and four rushing touchdowns. He also received the William V. Campbell Trophy, known as the "Academic Heisman," for excellence in academics, athletics, and leadership, and graduated with a bachelor's degree in general science.

The Chargers selected Herbert sixth overall in the 2020 NFL draft, making him the third quarterback taken after Joe Burrow and Tua Tagovailoa. He signed a fully guaranteed four-year, $26.6 million rookie contract on July 25, 2020. His jersey ranked 12th in sales to start the season. Herbert began the year as the backup to Tyrod Taylor. In Week 2, on September 20, 2020, he made his first NFL start against the Kansas City Chiefs, replacing Taylor.