The Bolts are in crisis mode – at least, that’s what it looks like from the outside. When Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh said he’d “follow [Justin Herbert] to hell and back,” it just felt like this was their year. But that offseason optimism came crashing down when the Chargers went 0-2 in the first two weeks, scoring just 14 points in each of those games. The biggest questions out of their Week 2 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders were directed at Herbert and a possible lack of vocal leadership. But Herbert immediately shut it down in a rare candid moment.
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In his latest presser, a reporter asked Herbert if Week 3 – going up against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium – is a week that demands more vocal leadership in the locker room after their 0-2 start. Herbert shut it down with the kind of response you’d expect from a franchise quarterback… at first.
“No. I think that would imply that there’s no need for vocal leadership before this week,” Herbert said. “And I think every week is a super important week for us and this is a great opportunity for us to go play football again and correct the things that we made mistakes on last week and keep pushing forward.”
But the question came back near the end of the presser. The reporter followed up on Herbert’s earlier quote and asked whether locker room speech has no use, and whether “instead of trying to talk out what hasn’t gone right,” it’s more important to look at the tape and figure out what went wrong. The reporter also made the case that it might help if players “talk things out.” But Herbert, visibly annoyed at this point, shut the question down.
“I think that happens regardless,” Justin Herbert said. “I think our team is so close, and so, I don’t think there’s a lack of vocal leadership at all. So, I think I’m going to stop you right there and say that it’s very present. We’ve got great leadership on this team and I trust those guys in that locker room. And so, I don’t think anyone is panicked or worried because that’s not going to do us any good. It’s moving on to the next play and understand that we’re close, we’ve made mistakes, how do we fix them and how do we move on?”
While that was the end of the presser, Herbert’s strong response has already drawn a lot of attention on social media and across news outlets. Having thrown only two touchdowns against 3 picks and 6 sacks in two weeks had already drawn a lot of scrutiny towards him and the offense, and Herbert has clearly been frustrated with the losses. That finally spilled out in this presser when pushed about vocal leadership.
Before this question, another reporter had asked Herbert whether there were any “glaring aspects” of offensive breakdowns that the Chargers might need to address with Herbert and offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel, Herbert made it clear it was just about “executing things cleaner,” avoiding turnovers and scoring in the red zone.
Now, long before Justin Herbert faced the media, Jim Harbaugh faced a similar question in that presser. The head coach was asked if this is a moment where vocal leadership and accountability is needed more. Harbaugh, just like his QB would later, shut that narrative down.
“Not necessary. Not necessari-ly,” Harbaugh said. “And 100% the vibe I got from players – coaches too – when we got back was just more interested in work than talking. And so that’s what we’re doing. Forward, full steam ahead. And yeah, work harder, work smarter, and work. That’s 100% the vibe I got from our players when they came back in the building.”
Harbaugh was then asked – sometimes players go to other players after losses like this, who, in his locker room holds that role since Harbaugh is the “main voice in there.” Harbaugh pointed to the captains and the tone setters, “the vocal guys to go to,” and admitted there’s a lot of such players in his locker room.
The question then shifted to Herbert, noting that the quarterback was reserved at first, and Harbaugh has been pushing him to be “more vocal.” But Harbaugh, just like his QB later on, took offense at that question and shut it down.
“Since I got here, since I’ve been with Justin, there’s not a thing I change about Justin,” Harbaugh said. “So, yeah, the way you said that was not correct. I wouldn’t change a thing about Justin. And that’s since I got here.”
A lot of teams have slow starts to the season, only to pick up steam and roll into the postseason. The 2025 Chargers had a three-win start to their season, which makes these questions they’re facing even sharper. But Jim Harbaugh and Justin Herbert are operating at the same wavelength in the face of a tough start to 2026. Time will tell if they can get over this slump. But for now, this synergy is the biggest source of optimism for a team searching for its first win of the season.