Chargers QB Herbert looks to add playoff victory to list of accomplishments

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — Justin Herbert has accomplished several personal milestones during his first five years in the league.

However, it hasn’t resulted in playoff success for the Los Angeles Chargers.

Herbert can change that on Saturday when the Chargers travel to Houston for an AFC wild-card round game.

It will be Herbert’s second postseason start. While he realizes the stakes involved with Saturday’s game, he is trying to take the same approach as he would any other week.

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“It would mean everything for us (to get a win). It is the most important game this year because it’s the next one,” Herbert said.

Herbert and the Chargers raced out to a 27-0 first-half lead two years ago at Jacksonville in a wild-card round game, only to have the Jaguars rally for a 31-30 victory.

One thing Herbert is trying not to do is make sure what happened in that game doesn’t impact what happens on Saturday.

“You never let a previous game affect the next one. There have been plenty of games we have won or lost the past couple of years we haven’t brought up,” he said.

Despite helping lead the Chargers to 11 victories — their most since 2018 — it has been a mixed season statistically for Herbert. He averaged a career-low 227.6 passing yards per game, but has a career-best 101.7 passer rating.

Herbert also became the second player in league history to have at least 500 pass attempts and throw three or fewer interceptions in a season. Aaron Rodgers was the first in 2018. Despite having only two 300-yard games this season, Herbert still has the most completions (1,945) and passing yards (21,093) by a player in his first five seasons in NFL history.

Going into the season, Herbert was learning his fourth offense in five years and trying to build a rapport with an inexperienced receiving unit after the offseason departures of Keenan Allen and Mike Williams.

To compound matters, Herbert missed two weeks of training camp because of a foot injury. He then was limited in two early season games because of a high ankle sprain suffered on Sept. 15 at Carolina.

Herbert admitted this week that the learning curve of coordinator Greg Roman’s offense was a bit steep.

“It takes a long time, especially to have a feel for why he’s calling a certain play and understanding the different checks and what he wants,” Herbert said. “It’s something you can’t just learn in camps and OTAs where you’re not facing a true defense or feeling the true pressure.”

The most significant area of improvement in Herbert’s game this season has been using play action. The Chargers used play action on 32.6% of his drop-backs, the second-highest rate in the league.

“I feel like he has improved incredibly from day one to now,” Roman said of Herbert and play action. “He wasn’t into the play action a whole lot, so the ball handling, the fakes, the various actions, some quarterbacks do it well, and others it is an afterthought. It’s a token. I feel like he has really brought that level of his game up and continues to ascend.”

Since being hired by the Chargers last January, coach Jim Harbaugh has been Herbert’s biggest fan. Harbaugh has developed more of an appreciation of Herbert watching him in practice.

“He gives no keys. There’s nothing with his eyes that tell a defender where the ball is going, nothing with his shoulder tilt or his posture,” Harbaugh said. “The ball is released so quickly that it is by people. Defenders don’t have the advantage of getting a set.

“I think, too, for receivers, his anticipation and timing are so incredible they can’t count on seeing the ball out of his hand. A lot of times when they are running the routes, the ball might be halfway there.”

Herbert said the points of emphasis against the Texans on Saturday will be the same they have been the entire season — executing on third down and in the red zone along with limiting turnovers.

Herbert and the Chargers will face a Texans defense that is ranked sixth against the pass, allowing 201 yards per game. Houston was second in the league in interceptions with 19.

“The most important thing is to trust yourself and know we didn’t get here by chance or luck. We earned the spot, and nothing else is given. We have to survive, make plays and trust we know what we’re doing and play the way we can,” Herbert said.

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