Justin Herbert signed a record-breaking contract extension with the Los Angeles Chargers during the training camp ahead of the 2023 NFL season. His new five-year deal is worth a massive $262.5 million and keeps him under contract until the conclusion of the 2029 NFL season. The extension will be added to his initial rookie contract signed with the Chargers in 2020.
Herbert earned his extension in the first year being eligible to do so, as per the three-year required waiting period in his rookie contract. The Chargers were proactive in getting him signed long-term as he still had another year of eligibility and a fifth-year team option available. The young superstar is instead the new highest-paid player in NFL history per his $52.5 million in AAV.
Shortly after officially announcing the extension, the Chargers posted a tribute video for Justin Herbert via their official Twitter account. Along with the video was a caption stating, "QB1 of 1". Former Kansas City Chiefs and Cleveland Browns offensive lineman Mitchell Schwartz roasted the message in a quote tweet from his own personal Twitter account.
Here's what Schwartz had to say:
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"At losing 27 point playoff leads?"
Mitchell Schwartz is referring to the Chargers' disastrous loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Wild Card round of the NFL Playoffs last year. The Chargers held a commanding 27-0 lead in the 2nd quarter, as well as a 20-point lead at halftime, partially thanks to Trevor Lawrence throwing four interceptions.
Justin Herbert's offense went silent in the second half of the game, scoring just three more points the rest of the way. This assisted in the Jaguars making an epic comeback to win the game by a 31-30 score. Apparently, Schwartz blames Herbert for the Chargers' enormous collapse.
Despite the failure to close out the game, as well as having zero career postseason victories, Herbert still received his record-breaking contract extension.
Justin Herbert's historic start to his NFL career
A legitimate case can be made that Justin Herbert is off to the best statistical start to his career of any quarterback in NFL history. His insane numbers through three seasons with the Los Angeles Chargers prove it. His 14,089 passing yards and 102 total touchdowns are each the most ever in any player's first three seasons. He also has 94 passing touchdowns, ranking second only to Dan Marino.
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