A healthier Justin Herbert helps Chargers improve offensively

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Justin Herbert was adamant throughout training camp that the Los Angeles Chargers’ offense would be a work in progress early in the season.

But since the bye week, the offense has started to pick up steam and started to resemble what Chargers fans have been used to seeing since Herbert was drafted sixth overall in 2020.

Herbert getting healthier and practicing more with his receivers has opened up the vertical passing game. Heading into Sunday’s game at Cleveland, Herbert had completed 540 passes of 10 yards or more in the last three games.

Herbert ranks 22nd of 36 in downfield passes for the Chargers since Week 5. That’s a pretty big change from the first four games, when it was 8 out of 24 games.

“I don’t think people realized what he was dealing with physically at the beginning of the year,” offensive coordinator Greg Roman said. “So you can see how much of a difference that makes as he gets healthier. Secondly, I think every week he gets more comfortable and takes ownership of the things we’re doing and understanding. We’ve just scratched the surface in the last few weeks.”

Herbert missed two weeks of training camp due to a plantar fascia injury in his right foot. He then suffered a high right ankle sprain in a Week 2 win at Carolina, affecting his mobility in losses against Pittsburgh and Kansas City. The ankle injury also meant Herbert missed full team training for two weeks.

If this had been Herbert’s second or third year in Roman’s offense, time away might not have mattered as much. But with a new system and a relatively inexperienced receiving corps, there was a lot to make up quickly.

“We had to change a lot of what we were doing to adapt to the situation,” Roman said. “You’re not going to sit there and talk about it in the moment. You just have to do the best you can. But in the first year, it’s probably about the worst case scenario you could ask for.”

The Chargers’ commitment to being balanced offensively has remained constant throughout the season. They set up a 51.4% pass rush rate; this is the lowest rate through seven games since 2007 at 47.8%.

Despite the receivers’ relative lack of experience, Herbert was unable to make an interception in his last five starts, which is the longest active streak in the league and one game short of the franchise record.

Tight End Will Dissly has 13 of his 26 receptions over the last two games. Ladd McConkey was the Chargers’ first rookie receiver since 2010 to have 100 receiving yards and two touchdowns.

After a slow start to the season, Joshua Palmer has six receptions in the last two games, including a 45-yarder last week.

Herbert could add another target this week as DJ Chark looks to make his debut after being sidelined for two months with a groin injury.

Herbert is also a threat running the ball. His 38-yard tackle late in the first quarter against the Saints helped get the offense back on track.

“I think everything is slowly but surely coming together. I know we’ve had some setbacks and a few injuries, but when Justin is healthy you can see what we can do,” Palmer said. “Just the threat of him running the ball brings it all up.”

Coach Jim Harbaugh and Roman have preached a physical mindset, but flexibility might be the best definition of the offense’s identity. The team has experienced a deficiency in this regard as it has been among the teams with the highest pass percentage in recent seasons.

“If we can do everything, whether it’s running the ball, passing the ball and having both. Being sure is a threat in itself and teams need to respect that,” Herbert said. “If we can get to that point offensively, I think it will open up a lot of things.”

JK Dobbins ranks 10th in the league with 535 yards receiving and is making a solid bid for Comeback Player of the Year after missing most of last season with an Achilles injury. Dobbins has averaged just 3.2 yards per carry in his last five games, but he has six carries of 12 yards or more.

The Chargers may need to lean more into the running game on Sunday against a Browns defense that has the fifth-lowest completion percentage allowed on throws of 10 yards or longer (43.7%).