Justin Herbert came in for a hug. Jim Harbaugh punched him in the chest. Over and over and over.
If the towering 6-foot-6 quarterback looked uncomfortable in the viral clip of Harbaugh’s pregame greeting that involves the coach hitting and punching his starting quarterback, just know Herbert indeed was shocked.
“I could have watched the film on that,” the Chargers star said with a half smile after he admitted to thinking Harbaugh’s routine was over as he walked away only to get pounded on the back.
It was a rare disconnect between the Chargers’ franchise quarterback and their culture-setting head coach whose relationship will form the base of the team’s next era. The importance of the connection between a franchise’s head coach and quarterback can’t be overstated, Chargers quarterback coach Shane Day said, and like Herbert’s sturdy shoulder pads, this bond is strong.
“That intensity and that love for the game is gonna just help Justin soar,” Day said.
The 2020 AP offensive rookie of the year, Herbert set numerous individual passing records during his first four seasons. The Pro Bowl player completes passes almost no one else in the NFL would even attempt.
But after leading the Chargers to a season-opening win over the Raiders to begin his fifth NFL season, Herbert is 31-32 as a starter. Now in his fifth season, the former No. 6 overall pick has yet to win a playoff game, losing in his only appearance after squandering a 27-point lead in the 2021 AFC wild-card game.
Turning a prolific quarterback into a championship quarterback takes the perfect cosmic alignment between organization, head coach and players, Todd Mortensen said. Harbaugh’s first college quarterback added, however, if anyone could help Herbert take the final leap, it’s Harbaugh.
Mortensen was a career backup at Brigham Young University before transferring to University of San Diego in 2004. In one year under Harbaugh, Mortensen set school single-season records for passing attempts (389) and completions (234) while throwing for 2,874 yards and 25 touchdowns.
The player who was just looking for a place to start at quarterback in his final year of college football before pursuing his post-football plan of law and business school started getting NFL interest.
He credits much of it to Harbaugh.
“He’s been able to build a team and then design a game plan and design an offensive system around the team that allows his quarterback to do well and allows the whole team to do well,” said Mortensen, who is now a business attorney in New York.
Harbaugh’s specialty is how he instills confidence in players, especially his quarterbacks, Mortensen said. The coach does it by pointing out both what his players do well and what they can improve. The compliments and the critiques are delivered with the same amount of enthusiasm and authenticity.
After 15 years as an NFL quarterback, Harbaugh still looks at the game through a signal-caller’s eyes, Day said. He is often in quarterback meetings, where Herbert and Harbaugh have bonded easily over their shared football passion.
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“He’s done such a great job asking questions, giving his input that we really feel comfortable with how we want this offense run,” Herbert said. “We know that our quarterbacks are well prepared for the game.”
Herbert is the latest in Harbaugh’s quarterback lineage that includes Andrew Luck, Colin Kaepernick and Alex Smith. Harbaugh believes Herbert could be one of the best.
Since meeting the 26-year-old, Harbaugh has compiled a list of his favorite things about Herbert. He is “the best leader” he’s ever been around. He’s a “human computer chip.” Sunday, after coaching Herbert in a regular-season game for the first time, Harbaugh added a new item.
“The top of that list is just how fierce of a competitor that he is,” Harbaugh said.
Although he portrays a reserved persona in public, Herbert was at the center of the team huddle before the Raiders game shouting at his teammates. He pointed his helmet at them as he yelled. He implored the offensive line to “take care of business up front, we’re all behind you guys.” He told the defense to “fly around.” Key words from the rest of his message to the defense were censored.
After the Chargers posted a video of the speech on social media, Herbert said he probably didn’t say anything too explosive. Likely just “dang,” he said. When told about the incriminating words that were cut out, Herbert shrugged.
“Well,” Herbert said, “football Justin’s different.”
The even-keeled Eugene, Ore., native indeed contains multitudes to his personality, Day insisted.
During the first half when the offense was struggling to break through against unexpected and unfamiliar Raiders defensive fronts, Herbert calmly sorted through the solutions on the sideline and confidently told his teammates what to change on the next drive. When he walked back to the sideline after the clinching touchdown in the fourth quarter, Herbert showed his fiery side in the celebration.
“That’s what good leaders do, they’re nuanced, they’re balanced, and they bring it out at the right time,” said Day, who coached Herbert to the Pro Bowl in 2021. “Depending on the environment, the situation and what’s going on, the context, he applies the right thing all the time, and he’s authentic. He’s never fake. He’s very much like Jim that way. They’re both comfortable in their personalities, and they don’t try to be somebody else.”
When considering his eccentric head coach known for tucking his shirts into his khakis and his golden-armed quarterback with flowing blonde hair, wide receiver Derius Davis doesn’t see many similarities. Maybe their bond is more akin to opposites that attract, the second-year receiver considered.
But Davis knows they share the most important qualities.
“Winning,” Davis said, “and having fun.”
Herbert’s awkward pregame exchange with Harbaugh provided a moment of levity as teammates saw the video circulating on social media. Running back J.K. Dobbins was fighting back tears of laughter while watching during an interview on “The Pat McAfee Show”.
Harbaugh said the tradition comes from his first preseason game as a rookie with the Bears. He was staring at his locker before the game when back Walter Payton asked if he was nervous. Harbaugh, trying to play the role of confident first-round draft pick, puffed his chest out and said no. When the Hall of Fame running back said he gets nervous before every game, Harbaugh recanted his original statement.
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To manage the nerves, Payton asked to run a toss sweep early in the game so he could take a hit to settle in. Figuring he didn’t want to get hit on the field, Harbaugh enlisted some teammates to rough him up. He’s since taken the responsibility of delivering the first hit to his quarterbacks.
Harbaugh’s first hits on Mortensen before their first game together — Harbaugh’s first in his career as a head coach — were so strong that they shocked Mortensen before he collected himself, looked his coach straight in the eye and shouted back “Let’s go!”
Twenty years later in his first regular-season game as the head coach for the Chargers, Harbaugh laughed when he said he must have felt “like a mosquito” to Herbert.
“He could have hit me harder,” Herbert said. “I’ll ask him next time like, ‘Hey, you got to make sure I feel those punches.'”
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.