Chargers start Justin Herbert in shocking move vs. Chiefs

Everyone knew that Justin Herbert was the quarterback of the Chargers’ future, but his start today against the Chiefs was a big surprise.

The moment the Chargers spent a first round pick on quarterback Justin Herbert it was clear he would become the quarterback of the team’s future. On Sunday, he surprisingly became the quarterback of Los Angeles’ present.

All indications during the week were that Tyrod Taylor would get the starting nod for the Chargers against the Chiefs. Instead, head coach Anthony Lynn made the shocking decision to hand Herbert his first start against the defending Super Bowl champions.

It’s highly unlikely that inserting Herbert into the starting lineup is going to change the game’s eventual outcome. The Chiefs simply have too much firepower on both sides of the ball to be undone by an untested rookie quarterback.

The significance is that getting Herbert onto the field this early in the season changes the medium-term outlook for the Chargers. Taylor’s ceiling as a starting quarterback is that of a passable, but below-average signal-caller. Herbert’s floor might be much lower than that of his veteran teammate, but Los Angeles’ coaching staff believes he has a legitimate chance to grow into an above-average starter.

It’s a particularly interesting call for a head coach whose job likely hinges on the team’s short-term success. It would have been easy for Lynn to stick with Taylor as the relatively safe choice. The obvious temptation would have been to rely on the team’s talented defense to dominate games and then try to make just enough plays on offense to eke out the number of wins required to secure a Wild Card berth.

At the very least, the Chargers now have a higher variance as a team. Herbert has above-average mobility and an intriguing amount of arm talent. He’s going to make more than his share of mistakes as an inexperienced player, but he does make the Los Angeles offense more dangerous.