The new era is officially here for the Chargers.
After 16 years of Philip Rivers, Oregon’s Justin Herbert is next in line. However, there’s no pressure on Herbert to save the franchise right away.
The Chargers seem content with easing their prized rookie along.
“He has a great head on his shoulders, and I’m not so concerned about him being the face of the franchise,” Chargers general manager Tom Telesco said after the first round of the draft concluded Thursday night. “He’s a rookie player who plays a very high-profile position, I get that. He’s a quarterback. But we also have two quarterbacks here right now who we’re happy with, so there’s no pressure for Justin to walk in Day 1 — we’re not asking him to come in and carry this football team whatsoever.”
Nonetheless, Herbert is ready to compete against Tyrod Taylor.
“They asked me how I felt about it and I said I’m going to do everything I can to be the best quarterback I can be,” Herbert said. “If I’m the guy, that’s great, I love playing football and I want to be the guy. But if I have to sit back and learn I’m going to do everything I can to be the quarterback I need to be.”
LA has a roster ready to win now, so may the best man win.
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