Rich on the Chances the 0-8 Chargers Could Trade Justin Herbert

The Los Angeles Chargers are 0-8, and Rich called it "the biggest mystery of the 2026 season." It has also opened the door to a conversation Rich described as a third rail: could the Chargers trade Justin Herbert?

Rich started with the man who would have to sign off on it. Jim Harbaugh, Rich said, once sat in the chair next to him on the show and talked about waking up in the middle of the night thinking, "How do I get Justin Herbert to the Hall of Fame?" Rich added, "Nobody pumps up their quarterback quite like Jim Harbaugh to Justin Herbert." Now Harbaugh is a very prideful coach who "probably can't believe he's 0 and 8 this morning."

The details are ugly. The team "can't put one foot in front of the other," Rich said. A streak of 37 straight possessions without a touchdown finally ended in the loss to the Texans, who put up 40 and sacked Herbert eight times.

Joe Alt, whom Rich called a Pro Bowler and All-Pro, is now playing the left side because Slater can't stay healthy. Rich pointed to a photograph on screen of Herbert being sacked by multiple defenders with the play sheet on his left wrist flying in the air. "This is the 2026 Chargers offensive season in a nutshell in one photograph," Rich said. "Can't protect him. The play calling is up in the air." On top of that, Rich noted, Herbert has thrown the ball directly to opponents, and one player got back spasms before the game and didn't play at all. "The whole thing is just so wild."

So here's Rich's question. "Could there possibly be an inch of daylight, a single ray of daylight between Jim Harbaugh and what he thinks about Justin Herbert as a quarterback in the future?"

If there were, the price would be enormous. Rich floated the 7-1 Vikings as the team people are connecting to Herbert, since all they need is a real-deal quarterback. "I don't care how poorly he's playing and how bad the Chargers look," Rich said. "There would be multiple ones."

Others on set pushed back. One voice said maybe two first-rounders. Another asked what Herbert has shown lately to make anyone believe in him. Rich didn't budge. "This kid is still Justin Herbert, man," he said. For the Chargers' talent evaluators to decide they're done with him after eight straight losses to open a season "would be wild. I don't see it. I don't see it at all."

Rich put the start in historical context. The Chargers are the sixth team in the Super Bowl era to start 0-8 after making the playoffs the previous season, and the last was the 2011 Colts. He wondered aloud if that was the Peyton Manning neck year.

There's another wrinkle. Herbert also hurt his hand. Harbaugh said Herbert wanted to go back in the game, but it was the coach's decision to take him out, and they didn't yet know if it was a sprain, a bruise or possibly a fracture.

"If that's what it is, then this whole conversation's moot," Rich said. A contender like Minnesota doesn't make that kind of move in the middle of a season for a potentially banged-up quarterback. Rich said he sees that as far more off the table than his earlier idea involving Kirk Cousins. "Daniel Jones makes sense," he said.

What about Geno Smith? "Yeah, that would too," came the answer. The crew didn't think Smith would be the Jets' starter next season anyway, and they figured New York will have its shot at nearly any quarterback it wants in the draft.

That's because of all the picks. Rich shared that die-hard Jets fan Vinnie Pasquantino texted the group during the Colts-Cowboys game, asking which team losing would be better for the Jets, since New York owns both first-round picks. Rich's answer was the Colts, because they have a better shot at losing more games. The Jets, the crew noted, currently sit with picks four, six and 13.

So trading Smith for more picks? "More is more," the crew agreed. Especially if the player you land with one of them is David Bailey. "Holy cow."