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Jim Harbaugh Compares Justin Herbert Pass to One of Most Famous in NFL History

Los Angeles Chargers coach is here to hype up his quarterback.

Kyle Koster

Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (10) warms up before a game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium.
Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (10) warms up before a game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium. / Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
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Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers capped a successful regular season by earning a 34–20 win over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 18. Jim Harbaugh's team took a bit to wake up and was trailing 10–9 late in the second quarter when Herbert found DJ Chark for a touchdown pass. The first-year Chargers coach then decided to go for a two-point conversion to go up seven points and Herbert, yet again, delivered on that confidence by connecting with Ladd McConkey in the back of the end zone.

It was a nice throw but not really anything people brought into their work weeks to talk about around the water cooler. For Harbaugh, though, it was amazing.

He shared his thoughts on the toss during his media availability on Thursday, conjuring a comparison to one of the most iconic NFL plays ever—Joe Montana to Dwight Clark in what has been known as "The Catch" since the 1981 NFC championship game. According to Harbaugh, Herbert faced a higher degree of difficulty than what Montana had to negotiate.

Every quarterback deserves a coach who will hype them up. But Harbaugh's claim may not hold up. The Catch is below for reference and Montana is backpedaling. Also these were slightly different situations with stakes that could not have had a larger gulf.

This is the type of stuff that can happen when one attacks the day with an enthusiasm unknown to mankind. It's a wonderful sentiment from a coaching perspective but now Harbaugh's rankings of historic NFL throws may not be gospel.

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Kyle Koster
KYLE KOSTER

Kyle Koster is an assistant managing editor at Sports Illustrated covering the intersection of sports and media. He was formerly the editor in chief of The Big Lead, where he worked from 2011 to '24. Koster also did turns at the Chicago Sun-Times, where he created the Sports Pros(e) blog, and at Woven Digital.

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