LA Chargers: 3 reasons why the Bolts are a legit Super Bowl dark horse

2. Justin Herbert’s jump in year two will likely be massive

It is safe to say that most NFL pundits are expecting Justin Herbert to be great in year two after setting just about every rookie record there is to set in year one. While there are the doubters out there, rarely do quarterbacks reach a level that Herbert reached only to regress suddenly.

And before anyone brings up Carson Wentz, he was hurt and was in an absolutely awful situation in Philadelphia. Herbert is in a much better situation, and quite frankly, is the better quarterback talent-wise.

While it is safe to say that many are expecting Herbert to be great in year two, it still feels like people are not truly recognizing how good he is going to be. The biggest jump for a professional quarterback comes early in his career when he goes from playing simply off of talent to playing with talent and the mind for the game.

Patrick Mahomes infamously said that he did not learn how to read NFL defenses until his second season as a starter. While Herbert is a very smart guy, chances are that he had the same struggles that will slowly start to clear up as he gets more reps at NFL speed.

In Herbert, we have a quarterback who played like a top-10 quarterback in 2021. With the massive jump he takes in year two, Herbert is likely going to be a top-five quarterback. Do you know who is often in the Super Bowl picture? Top-five quarterbacks.

Just look at the Buffalo Bills, who went from a decent playoff team to a legitimate Super Bowl contender as Josh Allen made that jump, albeit a year later.