In Week 16, the Los Angeles Chargers' offense looked as good as it has all year, posting a season-high 452 total yards in an easy 34-17 victory, with Justin Herbert posting his first 300-yard game in more than two months.
One of the reasons Herbert was able to do so was that, for once, the Bolts' offensive line gave him ample time to throw the football. And as an added bonus, he avoided being sacked for the first time in nearly a year.
Of course, one of the other reasons the Los Angeles offense looked so good was that it was matched up against a dreadful Dallas Cowboys defense that ranks near the bottom of the league in pretty much every single major category.
In Week 17, however, the matchup was far different, as the Chargers took on a Houston Texans team that had surrendered the fewest total yards and the fewest points per game coming into this crucial AFC contest. And that's still the case, as the Texans put all sorts of pressure on Herbert and also stifled the Bolts' rushing attack en route to a 20-16 victory that knocked Los Angeles out of the AFC West race.
The Chargers' offensive line, which has had all sorts of issues this season could do absolutely nothing against the Texans, who sacked Herbert five times and held the Bolts to just 74 yards on the ground, marking LA's third-lowest rushing total of the season.
Despite all the pressure, Herbert still managed to complete 21 of 32 passes for 236 yards with a touchdown and an interception, also adding 37 rushing yards on six carries, accounting for half the team's total. Simply put, No. 10 was basically forced to put the Bolts on his back in an attempt to get his team a victory, and certainly gave everything he had in that attempt, making several miraculous plays.
But while Herbert's effort was admirable, there's no getting around the fact that he has to have more help if Los Angeles wants to make any real noise in the postseason. And former Chargers nose tackle Breiden Fehoko had no problem taking to his X account to voice his displeasure with what he saw on Saturday.
This was my biggest issues with the chargers. Justin Herbert plays like Superman too often and it covers up so much people get complacent. I get your pillar stone tackles hurt but that’s no excuse to trot out the product I’m seeing right now.
— Breiden Fehoko (@BreidenFehoko) December 27, 2025
Breiden Fehoko thinks the Chargers are letting Justin Herbert down
It's hard to fault the Chargers' defense for much of anything these days, as the Bolts have surrendered the fourth-fewest total yards and the eighth-fewest points per game this season. Sure, Jesse Minter's unit had a rough first quarter against Houston, giving up a pair of deep touchdown passes to C.J. Stroud, but it was a shutdown performance from there, as the Texans only scored six points the rest of the way.
Herbert obviously can't take the blame for the offensive woes, so, as it's been for the vast majority of this season, the offensive line continues to be the Bolts' biggest problem. Fehoko mentioned the losses of superstar tackles Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt, and those two going down obviously hurt.
It's been a battle for Jim Harbaugh to find consistency from anyone up front right now, which is why he continued to tinker with the lineup during the matchup with the Texans, replacing Bobby Hart with Austin Deculus in the third quarter, while also yanking Mekhi Becton for Trevor Penning at right guard for a drive, thus creating the team's 24th different offensive line combination this season.
Herbert, as we've all seen all season long, can make a lot of plays on his own. But if the Chargers can't figure out a way to get him some help, it's going to be another one-and-done come the postseason.