Despite injuries and a brutal offensive line, Herbert battled. But one analyst inexplicably ranked him below a conference rival.
Former Oregon quarterback Justin Herbert didn't have a lot of going his way on offense with the Los Angeles Chargers last season.
Still, Herbert threw for 3,727 yards, 26 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. He was good enough to lead the Chargers to the playoffs, but the team had an early exit.
The Chargers' loss in the wild-card can't be put on Herbert. He finished 19-of-31 passing for 159 yards. He also led the team in rushing with 57 yards on 10 carries.
The Chargers offensive line, hampered by injury, did not give Herbert or the defense a chance in a 16-3 loss to second-year quarterback Drake Maye and the New England Patriots.
Herbert was sacked six times for -39 yards and took a beating on plays that didn't end in sacks.
Nick Shook of NFL Media released his new quarterback rankings after the season. He placed Herbert at No. 5, one spot behind Maye.
"Justin Herbert deserves a medal for the courage required to get these Chargers to the playoffs," Shook wrote.
"He lost one starting tackle (Rashawn Slater) for the entire season and another for a significant portion of it (Joe Alt) and played a significant chunk of time without one or both of his top two running backs (Najee Harris and Omarion Hampton).
Despite significant injuries, Shook liked the way Herbert competed.
"He put the Chargers on his back anyway, finishing as both the leading passer and rusher in some games while carrying them to an 11-6 finish and a return trip to the playoffs," he wrote.
"Oh, he did much of this with a broken hand, too. Hopefully, the Chargers can stay healthy up front and take some of the responsibility off his shoulders next season."
It's questionable for Shook to put Maye over Herbert, given what the former Ducks quarterback had to deal with. Herbert's resume speaks for itself.
Maye had a good regular season and finished second in MVP voting for 2025. However, the Patriots quarterback faced an easy schedule during the regular season.
Maye showed serious flaws during the playoffs. Until the results of the next season are seen, Herbert deserves the benefit of the doubt going into 2026.