Justin Herbert has taken the NFL world by storm in just two seasons and it is safe to say that the LA Chargers drafting him with the sixth overall pick is the best thing the franchise could have done.
Herbert came into the league in a rookie season that he was not even supposed to start and set multiple NFL records despite being in one of the worst situations in the league. Some predicted that regression would hit Herbert in his second season but the former Oregon Duck got even better. Now, heading into 2022, Herbert is a legitimate MVP candidate.
That being said, there are still outlets and pundits who have not jumped on the Herbert train. The most notable among that group is Pro Football Focus, who led the way in predicting a Herbert regression in year two. PFF is currently rolling out its top-50 players list before the 2022 season and Herbert's name appeared much sooner than fans likely anticipated.
Justin Herbert checked in at no. 32 in PFF's top-50 players ranking. While the top of the list cannot all be quarterbacks, Herbert is a consensus top-five quarterback for many people and him ranking all the way at 32 is a bit strange.
But it gets worse from there.
Chargers fans are not going to like who PFF ranked ahead of Justin Herbert.
It is no secret that PFF, a Cincinnati-based company that is headlined by former Bengals legend Cris Collinsworth, loves Joe Burrow. Burrow's defense carrying him to the Super Bowl only intensified that love and PFF has taken a stance in the Herbert vs. Burrow debate. They prefer Burrow.
Burrow checked in as the 27th-ranked player mostly because of his PFF grade being higher last season. The problem with that is that PFF grades are very flawed and all the statistics are in favor of Herbert.
Herbert had more yards, more touchdowns, the lowest turnover-worthy throw rate in the league, a better QBR, more EPA/play and the list goes on and on. Burrow had a better completion percentage and a longer playoff run.
If Derek Carr throws a touchdown instead of an interception at the end of the AFC Wild-Card Game are we even having this conversation? If you put Herbert on last year's Bengals team with how they played defense in the playoffs (and their painfully easy schedule) wouldn't they be better?
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Most football fans and analysts seem to agree that the Chargers have the better quarterback in this debate, but not PFF. At least it makes for fun discourse and is our new version of Manning vs. Brady.