Jim Harbaugh: Justin Herbert needs to "be better" in his decision-making

The coach who not long ago said Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert will be remembered as the best quarterback in NFL history wants him to be better.

Via Kris Rhim on ESPN, Jim Harbaugh offered a public critique of Herbert's decision-making to date in 2026.

"Be better," Harbaugh told reporters. "Be better. And that drives Justin, that drives me, that drives his position coach, that drives Mike [McDaniel], the [offensive] coordinator. I mean, drives us all."

With three losses in three games, Harbaugh's not wrong.

"We want to be better," Harbaugh said. "We got to be better. We got to look at our scheme. We got to look at how we're performing, how we're doing things and who's doing it."

In Sunday's loss to the Bills, which included a blown 10-0 lead, Herbert completed 20 of 34 passes for 226 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. His passer rating for the season is a career-low (by far) 73.4. (Herbert's full-season low point in passer rating is 93.2.)

Here's a theory about the current issues in L.A. With all the talk about the Oscar Madison/Felix Unger vibe between Harbaugh and McDaniel, there has been little scrutiny of the relationship between Herbert and McDaniel.

McDaniel is verbose and quirky. Herbert is quiet and no-nonsense. It's entirely possible that the personalities don't mesh, and that this has kept them from working together the way they could.

As the Chargers stare at a possible 0-6 start (they play the Seahawks, Broncos, and Chiefs before a Week 7 bye), the situation bears watching. Something's off for the Chargers' offense, and the biggest difference is that the Chargers fired offensive coordinator Greg Roman and replaced him with McDaniel.