Are You More Optimistic Than You Were at Any Point in the Philip Rivers Era?

[BT3241]

I liked Rivers - Hebert I think he has what Rivers was missing to get us to the top but we will have to see when the big games come in his playoff performances.No one can argue right now that we have the QB we want. Hey it could of been Tau and we would be talking about something else. We got very lucky in the draft. I am very happy with him.

[Topcat]

I loved Rivers but he could never handle the pressure which is why he doesn't have a ring. He was literally the anti-Brady, playing lights out until you needed him and then watch him underthrow every pass and curl up for sacks that never came, it was heart wrenching to watch game in and game out.

Rivers would underthrow some of those passes in crunch time; my big bugaboo is that he would frequently force the rock into double coverage and get picked...hero ball...I do see Herbie occasionally force the rock into very tight windows, but wow, he's so accurate, he usually gets away with it...Herbie's accuracy and decision-making in crunch time is just light years ahead of Rivers...

[FoutsFan]

The 14-2 Marty team was the one...with Lt/Merriman etc. All except for the Marlon McCree fumble I think we would have been there. It was 4th down. Just knock it down. To this day I still can't believe it.

If this team makes the playoffs...we can see then more clearly if any optimism is warranted.

For now hopeful is a better word.

Even high schools know to knock down the 4th down pass.

[floydefisher]

It's 5 games...who knows what's going to happen in the future? Herbert could tear out an ACL, or the rookie left tackle could hit the wall later in the season...heck, Las Vegas just imploded after their coach got enmeshed in a scandal over emails and resigned. Lots can still happen between now and January.

Take it week to week and enjoy the ride for now. We can make comparisons later.

[BT3241]

At the mention of Marty the coach we have now is not going to settle for a field goal and rely on the defense to win the game. A lot has changed for the Chargers since Marty days. I am not going to lie in the close games I keep thinking they are going to blow it rather than win it. My confidence is growing and Hebert has a lot to do with it.

[Formula 21]

At the beginning of the River's era, I was sure he'd take us to the SB. And now I feel the same about Herbert. We are a damn lucky franchise with our QB picks.

[sonorajim]

The 14-2 Marty team was the one...with Lt/Merriman etc. All except for the Marlon McCree fumble I think we would have been there. It was 4th down. Just knock it down. To this day I still can't believe it.

If this team makes the playoffs...we can see then more clearly if any optimism is warranted.

For now hopeful is a better word.

I was sure we'd be in the S B with a strong shot to win- until McCree's idiotic play.
Then they fired Marty and I was just hopeful again.

Today I'm hopeful +. It's early in the season but there's a gleam.
I really like Staley, his staff, Herbert & the team.
This is the most pumped I've been for the Chargers since our 14-2 season.

[Guest]

I voted not yet because the 2006 team was easily the best team in the league. While Herbert is more physically talented than Rivers was, the talent on the 2006 team was greater than the talent on the current team.

In 2006, I thought, "We are going to win the Super Bowl!"

This year I think, "We have a chance to win the Super Bowl!"

[Guest]

Rivers would underthrow some of those passes in crunch time; my big bugaboo is that he would frequently force the rock into double coverage and get picked...hero ball...I do see Herbie occasionally force the rock into very tight windows, but wow, he's so accurate, he usually gets away with it...Herbie's accuracy and decision-making in crunch time is just light years ahead of Rivers...

I disagree with the notion that Rivers was not a clutch player (as he produced many, many come from behind wins for us) and with the notion that Herbert is more accurate than Rivers was. Both QBs are/were accurate. Herbert can get away with throws into smaller windows than Rivers could because he has a much stronger arm. Rivers compensated some with a very quick release (fastest in the league), but the arm strength difference between him and Herbert is night and day. Both QBs are/were very good from the neck up in terms of reading defenses and making the right play.

[Xenos]

I have never been more optimistic as a Charger fan. As much as I loved Rivers I always would cringe when they got the ball back late in the games. Rivers was not a good late game QB. The mentality between him and Herbie is vast. I look at Herbie and he has ice running through his veins. Rivers just looked like panic was setting in. Throw in the forward thinking of Staley and the cap space coming up next year and beyond. It's not even close in my opinion, but these are rare times coming up for Charger fans.

Did you forget all the great comebacks earlier in Rivers’ career?

[Formula 21]

I was sure we'd be in the S B with a strong shot to win- until McCree's idiotic play.
Then they fired Marty and I was just hopeful again.

Today I'm hopeful +. It's early in the season but there's a gleam.
I really like Staley, his staff, Herbert & the team.
This is the most pumped I've been for the Chargers since our 14-2 season.

[WindsorUK]

The 2009 team was led by Rivers. LT was clearly on the downside of his career. That team ran through Rivers and was a damned good team.

I love Herbert. I think he has a higher upside than Rivers. But please don’t go shitting on Rivers. Seriously. That guy didn’t miss a game for fourteen seasons as our starting QB. He played on a partially torn ACL in the 2008 AFC Championship game. He was the heart and soul of our team for a long time. When we were shit, he never waivered. He never asked for a trade or tried to leave town. I brought my second son home from the hospital in a Philip Rivers jersey, and I don’t regret that decision. I believe he will make the Hall of Fame and I plan to be there when he gets in. Rivers gave his all to this franchise. And when it was time to part ways, the team was the one that chose to part ways. I knew it was the right move. But it was still tough.

Again, I am so pumped about the Justin Herbert era. He’s doing things that are mind-blowing. But that doesn’t mean we should go shitting on the memory of Phil Rivers.

Wasn't shitting on anyone. Just saying our best chance to win when PR was QB was when LT was at the top of his game.
Philip was a warrior. Loved his competitiveness.
JH is the real deal. Regardless if he has an MVP skilled player with him or not, most here believe he'll take us to a championship.
Fingers crossed for all of us