The Los Angeles Chargers, against all odds, turnovers, and sloppy play, came away with a pivotal victory against the Philadelphia Eagles on MNF, bringing their chance to make the playoffs up to 79% according to The Athletic's NFL Playoff Simulator.
While the true hero of the game was their defense, Justin Herbert, who was playing with a fracture in his left hand after injuring it in the first quarter against the Las Vegas Raiders last week, proved yet again exactly who he is: one of the toughest and most unstoppable players in the league, hands down.
Facing constant pressure from the Eagles' defensive line and solid coverage from their secondary, Herbert still found a way to grind out a win: one that could very easily come to define the team's season through this final stretch of games.
Justin Herbert not only played through injury, he put his body on the line for his team
At this point in the NFL season, there is almost no player who is not banged up in some way, especially among those quarterbacks with sub-par offensive lines protecting them. Yet, almost no quarterback has taken as much punishment as Herbert has this year.
Including the matchup against Philadelphia, he has taken an absurd 45 sacks on the season, and, last night, the Chargers' offensive line does not look improved by any measure. Even in the absence of Jalen Carter, they allowed Herbert to be sacked seven times.
Yet, apart from the singular strip sack and the interception that occurred when Jaelan Phillips made contact with his arm, Herbert did an excellent job of limiting the damage and, at times, evading that pressure to escape the pocket.
Coupled with the pair of read options that netted significant gains, Herbert led the team in rushing with 66 yards on the night, stepping up in the pocket and saving plays that appeared to be dead on multiple occasions.
For a player that, essentially up until the hours approaching the game, was considered to be questionable and did not even possess any certainty about his ability to take snaps under center, this is impressive to say the least.
As much as one can gripe about the state of Los Angeles's offense, it's fair to say that the outcome of this game would have been much different had Trey Lance needed to start. For now, however, the Chargers have their quarterback, and he's here to lead them through their final gauntlet of the regular season.