Oregon Ducks, LA Chargers QB Justin Herbert a "Leader", "Rock" During Stuck Elevator

Former Oregon Ducks quarterback Justin Herbert took his leadership to another level with the Los Angeles Chargers before their game in Dallas. Herbert took charge while stuck in a hotel elevator.

Aug 17, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams quarterbacks coach Shane Day (left), quarterback Justin Herbert (center) and linebackers coach Navorro Bowman during the game against the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium. / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Leadership is among the qualities that NFL franchises look for in a quarterback. That leadership needs to be evident on the field, in the locker room, and away from the football facility.

But rarely, if ever, has that leadership been asked to extend to an elevator ride gone awry.

Nearly a dozen Los Angeles Chargers players were stuck in a broken elevator at the team hotel in Dallas Friday. Former Oregon Ducks quarterback Justin Herbert was among them.

Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh said the players and some members of the traveling party were stuck on the elevator without air conditioning for about two hours. Dallas Fire-Rescue was able to successfully save the group by helping them through the ceiling panel to an adjacent elevator.

"We dodged a bullet," Harbaugh said. "I usually think of dodging a bullet of dodging an injury in football. You’ve got to get good at that. You’ve got to get good at making yourself harder to break.

"That’s a shared experience that brought them closer together. I just missed it, being on that elevator. It was like, ‘Wish I could have been there with those guys.’ But Justin Herbert was."

Jun 13, 2024; Costa Mesa, CA, USA; Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (10) at a press conference during minicamp at the Hoag Performance Center. / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Herbert's leadership, or rather legend, on the elevator included holding back sweat, while everyone else came out of the incident sweating with some having removed their shirts.

"Justin Herbert, his hair was a little wet, but his shirt was completely dry," Harbaugh said. "That was another thing that blew me away. The guy is just a beast."

Despite fighting a foot injury throughout the preseason and not having as much on-field time and reps with the team, Herbert took charge of the situation.

"The remarkable things that came out of it was, to a guy, young rookie players, ‘Justin Herbert’s a leader. He was a rock. Kept everybody calm,’" Harbaugh said. "Jeri Fouts told me the same thing, pulled me aside after they got out, just how great Justin was. And everybody kept their poise.

"You get in those situations, and it’s a test of wills. I was proud of each of the guys and the two women that were on that elevator. That’s a win. You feel good about yourself. You were challenged. It was a test of will, and you pull it down, or pull it in. It was a camaraderie amongst that group that is even stronger than it was before."

The Chargers rallied the next day to beat the Cowboys 26-19 to close out he preseason. With a reportedly healthy Herbert, LAC begins the regular season Sep. 8 against the Las Vegas Raiders.

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