Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers are coming off a disappointing road loss to the Arizona Cardinals. With the Chargers’ defense crumbling against the run and their offensive line and weapons completely inept through most of the game, Herbert is in a place he hasn’t been before.
Losing after doing everything you possibly can to win. Football is a team sport and Herbert knows better than any Quarterback in the NFL.
Justin Herbert is the NFL equivalent of the tale of Sisyphus.
The Tale Of Sisyphus & How Justin Herbert is the NFL Equal
The tale of Sisyphus comes from ancient Greek mythology; a tale that shows how trickery and punishment for said tricks can eventually lead to never-ending punishment. The Greek god, Sisyphus was the first king of an ancient mythological city, Ephrya. He ruled with an iron fist and would do anything in the name of greed and to maintain his status as a ruthless king.
This type of ruling angered the major Greek God, Zeus, who tried to punish Sisyphus for his crimes. Failing to punish Sisyphus, due to the king’s ability to completely navigate any punishment his way, angered Zeus more. More attempts were made to punish the king of Ephrya.
Using trickery and deceit, his way of cheating death eventually caught up with Sisyphus. He was then sent to this underworld and his sentencing was described as:
“As a punishment for his crimes, Hades [Ruler of the Underworld] made Sisyphus roll a huge boulder endlessly up a steep hill in Tartarus [Prison for the wicked]. The maddening nature of the punishment was reserved for Sisyphus due to his belief that his cleverness surpassed that of Zeus himself. Hades accordingly displayed his cleverness by enchanting the boulder into rolling away from Sisyphus before he reached the top which ended up consigning Sisyphus to an eternity of useless efforts and unending frustration.”
The Relation to Justin Herbert
Although the reasoning for the punishment given to Sisyphus does not align with Herbert, the punishment itself is easily translatable.
Since 2020, the Chargers signal-caller has seen seemingly everything possible go wrong during his tenure. The firing of multiple head coaches, and offensive coordinators, the firing of a general manager, major injuries to himself and offensive weapons, missed game-winning field goals, crucial dropped passes, the #32 rushing offense in the league, poor offensive line play, and the last on this list that comes to mind, is a terrible 4th quarter defense.
All of these things do not happen at the same time, but all apply to the career Herbert has faced. The adversity he faces year by year yet the performance he gives to the Chargers year by year is absolutely stunning. A list made by Chargers fans on Reddit seven months ago gives a detailed list of accolades to show how special he truly is.
With the Chargers falling to 3-3 after a gut-wrenching loss to the Cardinals, it gave Herbert and fans alike a familiar feeling. The feeling of losing the same way no matter the situation. The former Oregon Quarterback battled his backside off trying to keep this team competitive in 2024 and since his arrival in 2020.
There will be a lot you can attribute to the Chargers’ loss to the Cardinals, and people will point to Cam Harts’ unnecessary roughness penalty, but this will haunt them.pic.twitter.com/2UyiL0KJiz
— Gavino Borquez (@GavinoBorquez) October 22, 2024
Different problems arise, and Herbert does everything in his power to overcome them, but yet the outcome remains the same.
The Chargers quarterback is stuck “pushing his boulder.”
Can the Los Angeles Chargers Free Herbert of Pushing his Boulder?
Losing 17-15 against the Cardinals and having Will Dissly as your leading receiver gives a lot of room for the Chargers to improve. Number ten for Los Angeles threw for 349 yards, doing so without any receiver stepping up. Something we have seen plenty of times before, but now there is no hope for Keenan Allen and Mike Williams to come back from injury and save the offense.
Justin Herbert averaged 8.9 YPA on 39 attempts throwing to Will Dissley, Josh Palmer, Jalen Reagor, and Simi Fehoko.
And they lost. My goodness.
— Marcus Mosher (@Marcus_Mosher) October 22, 2024
It’s up to young receivers to develop and build that chemistry up. It is up to the team and the franchise as a whole to free Herbert.
The Foundation Has Been Laid Already: Patience is a Virtue
This Chargers off-season was a step in the right direction, for the Bolts. Giving Herbert more protection, and a very talented second-round receiver was great in the draft process. This was of course coupled with the hiring of the esteemed, Jim Harbaugh and General Manager, Joe Hortiz.
After the aforementioned primetime loss to the Cardinals, the in-season hype train has slowed down to a halt. Chargers fans are now looking towards the future like they have since 2020. However, to believe that the season is over when you are .500 and only in week seven is absurd.
The foundation has been laid already for Herbert and the Chargers, and the rest of the 2024 season could allow for the future we want, and what Herbert deserves; The freedom of the Sisyphean punishment that he did not merit.
Main Photo: Joe Rondone/The Republic-USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
