Justin Herbert's old teammate predicts the last thing Chargers fans want to see

Justin Herbert is one of the best quarterbacks in the world, even when the deck is stacked against him. Herbert has often faced insurmountable challenges as the quarterback of the LA Chargers, including Saturday's loss against the Houston Texans.

Whether it be porous offensive line play or players dropping touchdown passes to lead to interceptions, Herbert didn't get much help from his offensive teammates on Saturday. Despite this, the quarterback with a broken left hand battled, and put together several eye-popping highlights to keep the game close.

Herbert is the entire reason the Chargers are relevant, and if he had a better infrastructure around him, he would firmly be in the MVP conversations that he deserves to be in. One quarterback in those conversations is Matthew Stafford,

Stafford knows exactly what Herbert is going through as he faced a similar situation with the Detroit Lions. Herbert's already had more team success than Stafford did in Detroit, though, making Chargers fans hopeful that he won't follow in his fellow LA quarterback's path.

Well, some are convinced that Herbert is definitely on the Stafford trajectory. In fact, one of Herbert's former teammates (and former Chargers fan favorite) Breiden Fehoko seems to think it's inevitable.

Justin Herbert following Matthew Stafford's path is Chargers fans' biggest nightmare

The hope is that Herbert plays his entire career with the Chargers and that his career lasts close to two decades. The two reality Chargers fans are afraid of is Herbert leaving (like Stafford) or retiring early (like Andrew Luck).

Herbert is under contract through the 2029 season. At that point, Herbert will be 31 years old and Jim Harbaugh's current Chargers contract will be expired. He could still be the head coach depending what happens, but he would be 67-turning-68 in the 2030 season.

Even if Harbaugh's still coaching it could be the start of a transition period in Los Angeles. And if that's the case, Herbert could look to latch himself onto another team with an offensive-minded head coach.

The hope is that Herbert never has to even weigh that option. The one way to make sure that doesn't happen is to contend for Super Bowls. And while the team has won 11 games in back-to-back seasons under Harbaugh, a large portion of the fanbase doesn't see a Super Bowl as a possibility, especially after Saturday's loss.

Hopefully, Fehoko doesn't have an inside track on how Herbert is feeling about his situation in LA. The hope is that this is just a gut feeling, and not something influenced by information he knows that the fanbase doesn't.

But either way, it's scary to hear one on Herbert's teammates openly talk about this as if it is a foregone conclusion.