Cobble together all the Jim Harbaugh quotes about Justin Herbert over the past two seasons, and you'd think he was spinning a tale of Paul Bunyan rather than an NFL quarterback.
Sunday, Herbert lived up to that lumberjack folklore with a big play in a massive moment.
After the Chargers choked away a 13-point fourth-quarter lead, trailing Miami, 27-26, with 39 seconds remaining, Herbert took the field at his own 41-yard line, needing 20 or so yards to attempt a game-winning field goal. On the first-down snap, Herbert avoided a back-breaking sack, barely muscling the ball away. Then came the Bunyan-esque play.
On second down, the Dolphins brought heat again, overwhelming a banged-up Chargers offensive line. With the strength of 10 men, Herbert avoided Chop Robinson and stepped through a Jaelan Phillips sack, shrugging off the 263-pound edge rusher. He found Ladd McConkey in the flat, and the wideout put a move on in space, racing for a 42-yard gain to set up the game-winning Cameron Dicker field goal.
"He's a mighty man," Harbaugh said of Herbert, via the Los Angeles Times. "I mean, there's only a few in the game who can make that play."
Added Harbaugh: "It's at a physical level only a couple guys can reach. But mentally, it's an emotionally hijacking thing to be spun around like that. To keep your wits, visualize where someone is, relocate, lock back in, and make an accurate throw. ... That's reserved for the best of the best."
The play helped the Chargers escape a game they should have run away with against an opponent that is aching to be laid to rest. However, the offense's inability to find paydirt in the red zone (two of seven) gave the Dolphins a chance to get back in the game.
Despite a walking-wounded offensive line, a running back crew absent its top two, and L.A. missing wideout Quentin Johnston, Herbert still made the play late when his team needed him to pull out magic.
"That play will burn in my mind until they throw dirt on top of me," Harbaugh said.
As long as Herbert avoids injury, no one will be throwing dirt on top of the Chargers' season anytime soon either.
