It’s Getting Harder to Deny the Justin Herbert, Mike McDaniel Hype Train for Chargers

New Los Angeles Chargers offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel turned some heads at offseason workouts this week with his commentary at the podium. 

McDaniel’s notes about Justin Herbert’s development as a quarterback were the first national proof to the popular idea that he would be able to take one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks even higher, spurring more team success in the process. 

Before McDaniel’s viral chat, that was simply a theory. Many offenses around the NFL watched McDaniel and attempted to copy his concepts in the past. He squeaked elite play out of Tua Tagovailoa, albeit briefly. His accolades as an offensive mind aren’t hard to find. Paired with a quarterback of Herbert’s skill, the ceiling seemed more within reach than ever. 

And it’s an idea really starting to get some traction in national spaces, not just within the Chargers fanbase.

Mike McDaniel, Justin Herbert connection has NFL buzzing

One of the biggest things front and center since Day 1 of McDaniel's arrival?

Herbert getting the ball out fast. 

The idea is to keep an oft-under-assault quarterback healthy, sure. But it’s also about unlocking a key aspect of Herbert’s game that hasn’t been explored in archaic previous offenses. And it’s about leaning into something defenses will have a harder time stopping. 

It’s all about the 2.4 second mark. As The Athletic’s Daniel Popper explained, Herbert ranked seventh in completion percentage but 22nd in yards per attempt (6.4) when his time to throw was under that mark. Over multiple years with McDaniel, Tagovailoa’s was 7.8 yards, second amongst all quarterbacks. 

So, better scheming and concepts in a modern-feeling offense should create a more explosive, harder-to-defend attack while keeping Herbert from hits. 

It’s compelling. While watching the presser, Yahoo Sports’ Nate Tice wrote that “McDaniel is going to be such an upgrade in every aspect for this offense. He even has shown the ability to craft an offense that can overcome OL deficiencies and injuries.”

Sam Monson, formerly of Pro Football Focus, added this: “It is definitely worth considering that Mike McDaniel created the league's most potent offense for a time with Tua at the most important position...There's a world where access to Herbert's traits in his scheme's design is about to break the NFL.”

Hyperbole? Maybe. But McDaniel’s track record speaks for itself. And what he’s speaking in front of a mic right now meshes very well with what the Chargers and Herbert need to reach new heights. 

The next step is seeing how it starts to unfold over the summer on the field of play, but the early returns say McDaniel is indeed worthy of the hype as a coach for Herbert.

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