Chargers open contract negotiations with Justin Herbert as Eagles work to sign Jalen Hurts
The Eagles are saying everything right about not being pressured into giving Jalen Hurts a significant contract extension.
Well, we’ll see if Howie Roseman is serious because the competition to strike a deal first has heated up. ESPN’s Lindsey Thiry reports that negotiations between the Chargers and Justin Herbert are underway.
“Those talks are ongoing,” coach Brandon Staley said at the NFL’s annual league meeting. “We’re at the beginning of all that, but all know how we feel about him.”
Staley echoed Eagles GM Howie Roseman, who stated that he’s looking to complete a deal with his All-Pro quarterback “relatively soon.”
“We want him here long term,” Roseman said. “He’s going into the last year of his deal, and that’s going to be a priority for us to extend him. We have a great relationship with him. You have to navigate the offseason understanding that we’re not going to lose our franchise quarterback with one year left on his deal. Whatever that means, it means that 2024 is going to look different. We’re not going to have a quarterback on a rookie deal. We’re going into it with our eyes open and understanding that we’ve got to kind of flip it. A lot of guys on our team, especially on offense, have long-term deals. It’s not like we don’t have a bunch of guys who aren’t on long-term deals.”
A 2020 second-round pick, Hurts won’t have to worry about a fifth-year option before he can cash out, and 2023 will be the final year of his rookie contract.
Herbert, 25, became eligible to negotiate and sign a deal after the season.
He doesn’t have the personal accolades of Hurts, Lamar Jackson, or Joe Burrow.
Still, the former Oregon star is a top-seven quarterback and has amassed 14,089 passing yards and 94 touchdowns with 35 interceptions since being the sixth pick in the draft.
Last season, Herbert led the Chargers to their first playoff berth since 2018.
Now both organizations will work to get a deal done, with Philadelphia badly needing to strike a deal with the MVP runner-up and second-team All-Pro before the AFC West franchise gives Herbert $55 million a season or more in the coming weeks.
