Why the Chargers Gain More by Bench­ing Justin Herbert in Week 18

The Los Angeles Chargers’ Week 17 loss to the Houston Texans crushed any hopes they had to play the Denver Broncos for the AFC West Division title in Week 18.

Now sitting in the No. 6 seed, with only an unlikely Week 18 loss by the Texans to the Indianapolis Colts standing between them and the No. 5 seed, Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh faces a tricky decision: push for a statement win and spoil a division rival’s chance to be the No. 1 seed, or allow his banged-up team an opportunity to heal before the playoffs.

Already playing with a fractured bone in his non-throwing hand, it may be best for quarterback Justin Herbert to avoid an unnecessary meeting with the league's most QB-unfriendly defense.

Chargers’ Postseason Path at a Crossroads

The Chargers have been dealing with a patchwork offensive line since the beginning of the season after losing starting tackles Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt to season-ending injuries.

As a result, Herbert has faced a relentless amount of pressure, leading the league in pressure percentage and most recently taking five sacks in their Week 17 loss to the Texans.

When making his decision on whether to start Herbert, Harbaugh should look across the division and use the story of the 2016 Oakland Raiders as a cautionary tale. 

In 2016, the Raiders were riding to the postseason on the back of an MVP-caliber season by Derek Carr before a broken leg in Week 16 ended their Super Bowl aspirations. 

At the time, Oakland was tied with the Kansas City Chiefs in overall record, but trailed them in the AFC West standings due to head-to-head tiebreaker. The Raiders had already clinched a wild-card berth and continued playing their starters in hopes that the Chiefs would lose one of their final games.

Similar to Herbert, Carr was also already playing with another injury, a broken right pinky finger, and could have benefited from time away from the field to heal before their playoff run.

The risk is amplified considering what Herbert already faced against Denver earlier this season.

The Broncos defense has been relentless all year, leading the league in sacks, pressure percentage and QB knockdowns. Herbert has already gotten a taste of this in the team’s Week 3 matchup, where Denver sacked Herbert five times and had 14 QB hits.

With little to gain and much to lose, it will be interesting to see whether Harbaugh lets his pride or his brain decide his quarterback's fate in Week 18.