Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert returned Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders after leaving the game with a fracture on his non-throwing hand.
He finished the game with the injury as the Chargers secured a 31-14 win to improve to 8-4 and maintain their spot in the AFC playoff race. But his status for next week in a high-stakes game against the Philadelphia Eagles is unclear.
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Head coach Jim Harbaugh told reporters postgame that Herbert sustained a fracture in the back of his left hand. He’ll undergo surgery Monday to fix it. Harbaugh’s unsure if Herbert will miss any game time, including next Monday’s game against the Eagles.
“I’m treating it as if I’m playing Monday,” Herbert said.
Herbert injured on opening drive
Herbert led the Chargers on a 74-yard opening drive that finished with a touchdown pass to Quentin Johnston. It wasn’t immediately clear that Herbert suffered an injury, but he jogged with athletic trainers to the locker room after the possession.
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Backup quarterback Trey Lance took over on the next Los Angeles possession, and the Chargers announced that Herbert was questionable to return with a left-hand injury.
Herbert returned to the sideline with a padded glove on his injured left hand and did work with footballs to test his ability to play with the injury. He replaced Lance in the middle of the drive after determining that he could continue.
He played the remainder of the game while wearing the protective glove. He completed 15 of 20 passes for 151 yards with 2 touchdowns and 1 interception. Running back Kimani Vidal paced the Chargers’ offense with a 126 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries.
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Herbert was well enough to finish Sunday’s game. But his game status after Monday’s surgery won’t be known until later this week.
