Justin Herbert costs himself millions and Oregon’s playoff hopes vs. Arizona State

Saturday night was not great for Justin Herbert or his Oregon Ducks. He cost himself millions and the Ducks won’t be making the College Football Playoff.

The Oregon Ducks were the favorite to come out of the Pac-12 and reach the College Football Playoff this season. After losing their season opener in a neutral-site affair against the Auburn Tigers at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the Ducks had won nine straight games, including their first seven in Pac-12 play. It was smooth sailing until it wasn’t on Saturday in Tempe, Arizona.

The Ducks fell for the second time this season to Herm Edwards’s Arizona State Sun Devils. This second loss of the year ruins any chance Oregon would reach the College Football Playoff. They can still win the Pac-12, but a two-loss, Power 5 champion won’t make the top-four, especially given the Pac-12’s reputation in recent years. Also, quarterback Justin Herbert struggled.

Though he completed 20-of-36 passes for 304 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, this game was revealing for him as a top-tier NFL Draft prospect. With Tua Tagovailoa of the Alabama Crimson Tide suffering a season-ending hip injury last week, Herbert was seen as the No. 2 quarterback prospect in his class after Heisman Trophy frontrunner Joe Burrow of the LSU Tigers.

Burrow, an Ohio native, may be exactly what the Cincinnati Bengals need to go from being terrible to respectable. Herbert had the look of a guy that would succeed with the Miami Dolphins picking him in the top-five. He may still go to the Dolphins or another quarterback-desperate team in the top-10, but Herbert certainly put some bad tape together that will cost him millions of dollars.

Sure, Herbert has the look of a prototypical NFL quarterback prospect. He’s big, mobile and has a powerful right arm. However, he throws the football with zero-touch, his accuracy is a major concern, as is his ability to elevate in big games. He threw the ball out of the back of the end zone in the neutral-site loss to Auburn. On Saturday night, he let a so-so Arizona State team beat him.

Arizona State hadn’t led in a game since mid-October. The defensive-minded Sun Devils had lost four straight Pac-12 games and needed to win one of their final two games to earn bowl eligibility. They did so by pulling off the upset at home over a top-10 Oregon team.

Oregon is the latest team to see its Playoff dreams come to an end. While the NFL is in Herbert’s future, how sure are we that he’s going to be an effective NFL quarterback? A quarterback worthy of being a top-10 pick would have found a way to beat an Arizona State team to keep the Playoff dream alive. Now, the Ducks have to get ready for the Oregon State Beavers in the Civil War.

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