Los Angeles Chargers rookie quarterback Justin Herbert has enjoyed a strong rookie campaign on a personal level. Herbert stepped into the starting lineup under rather interesting circumstances, but during his time under center the rookie has demonstrated pocket, athleticism and arm talent beyond what most expected from him coming out of Oregon.
To date, Herbert has completed 64.8% of his passes for 3,224 yards and 23 touchdowns, against just nine interceptions. Very solid numbers for a rookie passer on a team that has a 3-9 record.
Now as we start to think about his future, his development path and ways he can improve over the final few games of 2020 and into 2021, there is an area to watch. As we illustrated last week in a breakdown of Tre’Davious White’s interception, Herbert has made mistakes when making assumptions about the backside defender in zone coverage schemes.
That happened again on one of his two interceptions against the New England Patriots. Prior to Chase Winovich stepping in front of a crossing route Herbert had almost all the information he needed to make a big play, except for one piece: Where Winovich was on the field.
Let’s turn to the tape:
Herbert has shown tremendous potential as a rookie. As we think about his next season, this is an area to watch for development. If he can start seeing the full picture when making decisions, he will be an even more difficult quarterback to defend.
