Huge new Herbert contract won't limit LA Chargers plans for new season
The Los Angeles Chargers made Justin Herbert the highest paid quarterback in the NFL this offseason, but the major extension won't impact the rest of the roster according to head coach Brandon Staley.
Herbert agreed to a five-year $262.5M (£203.5m) contract extension to remain with the Chargers last month, and with two years remaining on his rookie deal it means that he is now under contract for the next seven years. The Chargers feel as though Herbert is the man to lead them to a Super Bowl, and he's looked faultless in training camp so far.
Tom Brady was known for refusing major contracts in order to spread the wealth amongst his team-mates, and Aaron Rodgers also reconstructed his contract at the New York Jets this offseason to help their cap space moving forward. Herbert has joined Jalen Hurts, Lamar Jackson and Daniel Jones in signing major deals, but Staley isn't concerned about any repercussions.
Staley believes that the entire team is invested in Herbert, and that confidence in the quarterback is higher than ever. "You're just seeing Justin [Herbert] come alive, going into his fourth season he's just so comfortable now here being a Charger," Staley said on The Up & Adams show.
"Obviously with the new contract extension and how his teammates feel about him, it's his football team. You can see the confidence in all ways, I think at the line of scrimmage, during the play, pre-practice, post-practice, in the facility, just that comfort zone in his own skin.
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"I think you're seeing him each year improve, getting better and better. It's that confidence and freedom that you're looking for in a player. He's earning it, he's had a fantastic training camp and we are really fortunate to have him.
"I just think that the level of play and consistency has been elite. The way he's affecting his teammates on both sides of the ball, I've just never seen him better. The happiness, he's such a fierce competitor and I just think he's seeing the confidence that everybody else has in him too. The best is yet to come from him."
Herbert was the sixth-overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, and there is a real belief within the Chargers franchise that he can lead them to a championship. Herbert has played 49 games out of a possible 50, accumulating 14,089 yards along the way.
The Chargers quarterback has thrown 94 touchdowns and only 35 interceptions during his NFL career, and has also proven he can be dangerous running the ball. Herbert has rushed for 683 yards and six touchdowns in his three seasons.
The Chargers suffered a brutal defeat in the playoffs last season, losing a 30-point lead to the Jacksonville Jaguars. It was the very first postseason game for the 25-year-old, but the Chargers are convinced there will be many more in the near future.
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