Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers improved their chances of making the postseason with their defeat of the Tennessee Titans on Sunday afternoon. That was their third win in the last four games, pushing their record to 8-6 on the season. 

While the AFC West title is no longer attainable, as that was won for the seventh straight season by the Kansas City Chiefs, the Chargers are in the driver’s seat for a Wild Card berth. Los Angeles is in the position that they are in large part because of the play of Justin Herbert.

The Chargers have faced a good amount of adversity this season when it comes to injuries. Wide receivers Keenan Allen and Mike Williams have been in and out of the lineup while the defense had J.C Jackson for only five games this season and Joey Bosa for three.

Herbert has been a pillar in the lineup despite dealing with some injury concerns of his own. He suffered an injury to his ribs earlier in the season in Week 2 against the Kansas City Chiefs. While he didn’t miss any time, it seemed to hamper him as the Jacksonville Jaguars blew them out of the water in Week 3.

Despite those hurdles to overcome, Herbert has had another excellent season. While not as prolific as his first two seasons in the NFL touchdown-wise, Herbert will certainly sacrifice some personal accolades for more winning. He is also still moving the offense with success, as he surpassed the 4,000-yard mark this past weekend as well.

That gives Herbert the third 4,000-yard season of his career. According to PFF, that makes him the first player in NFL history to accomplish that feat in each of the first three seasons of their career.

That is quite an impressive feat for Herbert, who wasn’t even the starter out of the gate as a rookie. He was only forced into the lineup after a botched medical procedure on Tyrod Taylor that resulted in a punctured lung for the veteran and the franchise turned things over to Herbert.

While certainly an impressive accolade, it would mean a lot more if it came in a playoff season. The Chargers still have some work to do, but the schedule is most certainly in their favor as they do not face a team that currently has more than four wins or a winning record for the remainder of the season.