After falling to the Chiefs last Thursday night, the Chargers begin preparing for their Week 3 bout with the Jaguars.
But practice plans could be a little bit different this week, as the status of Justin Herbert remains to be seen.
Herbert has a fracture to his rib cartilage that he sustained in the Week 2 loss to Kansas City.
He suffered the injury on a hit late in the fourth quarter. He left the game for one play before returning. On his first snap back in, Herbert was hit again and visibly uncomfortable.
Following the game, Brandon Staley said Herbert was day-to-day, and the team would reassess before practice on Wednesday. Staley did not rule Herbert out from practicing, nor did he rule out him facing Jacksonville.
Giving Herbert the green light could come down to evaluating his pain levels after having those few extra days to rest, whether he feels he can still play at a high level, and if they’re confident enough that he won’t worsen it.
However, if the coaching staff believes that it would be more beneficial to use more time to recover, Herbert would be sidelined in favor of his backup, Chase Daniel.
Daniel, the 13-year veteran, has played 71 games with five starts, throwing for 1,694 yards and eight touchdowns.
If Daniel is under center, the offensive game plan would be altered quite a bit.
With an arm nowhere near the talent of Herbert, Daniel would likely be relegated to short and quick passes. The running game would also be relied on more than usual.
Ultimately, the defense could be the deciding factor in this game, as it’s hard to see the offense having a lot of spark if Daniel is given the start.
We will know Los Angeles’ plans at quarterback in the coming days.
