The Los Angeles Chargers have quickly morphed into one of the toughest teams to predict going into Week 14 thanks to the Justin Herbert injury and resulting surgery.
Usually, terms like injury and surgery make things pretty easy to predict in the NFL.
But in Herbert’s case, there’s a chance he will still be able to play, if not at a high level, when his team plays the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night in primetime.
Herbert suffered a fracture in his non-throwing hand during the win over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 13. Surgery followed the next day.
Understandably, NFL predictions are all over the place, all things considered.
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Justin Herbert injury swings NFL Week 14 predictions
On paper, the Chargers-Eagles matchup is a tough call when both teams are fully healthy. Both squads are playoff contenders, if not outright Super Bowl contenders, should they get hot during the postseason.
But over at CBS Sports, the actual end predictive result of Monday’s matchup hinges all on Herbert, as noted by John Breech:
“The Chargers QB has a broken left hand, and right now, it’s unclear if he’ll be playing on Monday night against the Eagles, which means one thing: I have to make two picks for the game.
IF HERBERT DOES NOT PLAY: Eagles 24-17 over Chargers
IF HERBERT PLAYS: Chargers 24-20 over Eagles”
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Even Herbert being on the field makes for a tough call, though. He actually returned to the win over the Raiders, finishing with 151 passing yards and two touchdowns. But he couldn’t take a handoff from under center.
Moving forward, the Chargers have been very open about the fact that backup Trey Lance will, at the very least, handle all goal-line situations. Herbert being in and otherwise limited to pistol and shotgun looks could make things predictable.
There’s also the post-surgery factor, as it’s probably a little different playing with the injury after an operation that needs protection.
Regardless, for those who actually want to predict games, Week 14’s Monday night, cross-conference showdown was one to avoid even before this unpredictable element entered the equation.
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