Bold predictions for the AFC West in 2020

Justin Herbert proves to be a bust

The Los Angeles Chargers are in the midst of a identity crisis.

For years, the Chargers were the best team out of the AFC West, with elite talent at every position that matters. This is why the Chargers are always the preseason champions, because the franchise has been synonymous with talent for so long that even if that talent has been lacking for a spell, analyst still correlate the two.

Unfortunately for the Chargers, that identity officially ended with the 2019 season.

Between the constant injuries, inconsistent play, lack of attendance, and poor execution in the moments that mattered the most, the Chargers were already on the verge of an identity crisis. Then when the 2019 season brought the worst case scenario for the Chargers, between the loss of Rivers and watching the Chiefs win the Super Bowl, they found themselves directionless and without an identity heading into the 2020 offseason.

In the 2020 Draft, the Chargers used their first round draft pick to start moving towards a new identity. Picking up Justin Herbert out of Oregon sixth overall, the Chargers said loud and clear that the team is moving to be younger, bolder, and louder than ever before. However, Herbert maybe a bad way to start establishing that identity.

Before the 2019 college football season, Herbert was the favorite to go first in the NFL Draft, with stories of his performance at the Peyton Manning QB camp making him sound like a god among men. Then the 2019 season happened, a season that would see stars like Tua Tagovailoa and Joe Burrow thrive and take center stage, while Herbert struggled to bounce back from an injury as the Oregon Ducks had a miserable season. The worship that was present in his draft profile prior was now replaced with his problematic tendencies and shortcomings, with football IQ and consistency being major concerns.

Herbert is going to need a ton of coaching before he sees any serious success in the NFL. In an offseason that has been shortened and restrained, Herbert is not going to get that any time soon. That is assuming that things like football IQ and consistency can be coached up by a franchise that has not had to coach a rookie in almost two decades. Meanwhile, Herbert will have to deal with some elite defensive players within his own division like Tyrann Mathieu, Von Miller, Maxx Crosby, Bradley Chubb, and Frank Clark who will outsmart and dismantle a young QB with such problems.

Sure, the Chargers can rely on Tyrod Taylor to lead the offense until they have enough confidence in Herbert, but no team drafts a quarterback at sixth overall to see them ride the bench for very long. This also serves to the detriment of Herbert, who will lack the on-field experience necessary to see success in the NFL. With the deck stacked against him like this, it will take a Patrick Mahomes-esque level of talent and execution for Herbert to see even a scrap of success.