On Wednesday, Cincinnati Bengals' quarterback Joe Burrow lit the NFL ablaze with a series of ominous comments that hinted at a sort of dissatisfaction with his current situation: a scary thing for Bengals fans to hear from their quarterback who has taken undue physical abuse at his position for years.
Yet, the Los Angeles Chargers, as insulated as they are from the Bengals' woes, may not be as far away from this brutal reality as they might think. Over the course of Herbert's and Burrow's six-year careers, they have steadily become, in many ways, representative of under-protected and over-abused NFL quarterbacks, and, if this trend continues, Chargers fans could soon find themselves in the same spot that Cincinnati fans are at currently.
Herbert is a tough customer, and so is Burrow. Any statement that Burrow makes along these lines, given what he has given to Cincinnati and what he has been given in return, should not be taken lightly.
Yet, while Herbert has shown no indication of any sort of dissatisfaction in Los Angeles, and certainly neither quarterback has reached a point of a public fracture with his team, there is only so much punishment that one man can take.
Joe Burrow's dissatisfaction reflects a nightmare scenario for Chargers fans
It goes without saying that, in his time in the NFL, Burrow has been among the elite quarterbacks in the league. In spite of his injury history, he has still amassed almost 20,000 passing yards and 148 touchdowns over his six seasons.
Yet, in that time, he has also been sacked 203 separate times: a direct product of the struggles of the Bengals' offensive line since the start of his career. Burrow's impact, apart from their Super Bowl run in 2021, has been limited largely by his team's inability to put viable protection in front of him.
Sound familiar?
In Herbert's six seasons in the league, he has been sacked a whopping 216 times, including 45 times in just 13 games this season. While it has not resulted in the injuries that have plagued Burrow, Herbert has taken his fair share of physical contact.
Even last week against the Philadelphia Eagles, when Herbert was playing with a broken hand, the offensive line showed no sign of increased motivation, allowing him to be sacked a season-high seven times against an opposing defensive line that was without its biggest playmaker in Jalen Carter.
Under a revamped, Jim Harbaugh-led system, there is hope that the Chargers can turn this around in time to maximize the impact that Herbert can make when he is in his prime. Yet, it begs a dire question. How long will Herbert remain happy on a team that is incapable of putting together the tools he needs to compete for a Super Bowl and, more importantly, to avoid serious injury?