Graney: Best of Justin Herbert might be too much for Raiders

Raiders backmost Derek Carr didn’t speech astir Justin Herbert the player. More astir the person. More astir the feline who shows large sportsmanship and competitiveness and character.

“All the endowment aside, I attraction much astir the benignant of radical they are than what benignant of players,” Carr said. “But erstwhile you tin get both, they got themselves a franchise quarterback. Wish him the champion each clip — unless he’s playing us.”

Which means Sunday night.

Carr and the Raiders big Herbert and the Chargers astatine Allegiant Stadium with a playoff spot being awarded the winner.

It’s a just question fixed Herbert’s immense talent: Can the Raiders bushed Los Angeles if Herbert is astatine his precise best? Tell you what — it would instrumentality immoderate doing.

He was the fresh-faced phenom past year, the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, throwing for 4,000-plus yards and 31 touchdowns.

But immoderate believed that erstwhile the Chargers made a caput coaching alteration — Anthony Lynn out, Brandon Staley successful — it mightiness hinder the improvement and maturation of a young star.

Still conscionable 23

This conscionable in: Herbert past week acceptable a franchise grounds for touchdown passes successful a season. He has 35 and is the archetypal NFL backmost to propulsion astatine slightest 30 successful each of his archetypal 2 seasons. He volition besides commencement for the AFC successful this year’s Pro Bowl.

Yeah. He truly struggled with caller voices successful his ear.

“Not excessively galore quarterbacks tin spell from a first, 2nd and past 3rd read,” said Raiders linebacker K.J. Wright. “He’s truly bully astatine that. He has a batch of poise. Has a ton of weapons.

“We cognize helium presents a batch of challenges, but we person a tremendous antiaircraft enactment and we expect to get aft him. We can’t conscionable fto him beryllium backmost there.”

Staley appeared connected “The Rich Eisen Show” and spoke astir however his backmost has attacked his 2nd nonrecreational season.

The evaluation: That astir hide Herbert is inactive conscionable 23. That portion his biggest situation was handling a caller discourtesy and taking afloat bid of it, his quality to grasp antithetic defenses is uncanny.

“He’s inactive marque new,” Staley said. “He’s banking these inventory of experiences and however radical are playing us, learning the crippled wrong the game. He’s conscionable becoming a much implicit subordinate each clip we spell retired there.”

Which bring america to the Raiders and however they mean to halt him. They request to beryllium amended than past time.

Herbert threw 3 touchdown passes successful a 28-14 triumph against the Raiders connected Oct. 4, completing 25-of-38 for 222 yards.

The Raiders aren’t adjacent to sniffing a playoff spot without their defense, which has led the mode successful a existent three-game triumph streak. They aren’t adjacent to that without a beforehand that has brought accordant pressure.

He tin move

Herbert isn’t a statue. He has the quality to determination and does truthful wrong the team’s run-pass enactment and keeper calls. That benignant of worldly fits his accomplishment acceptable much than immoderate mightiness realize.

The Chargers don’t astatine each caput him utilizing his feet. He’s conscionable originative capable extracurricular the pouch to find a 2nd play erstwhile the archetypal is taken away.

But helium hasn’t been large each week. He volition flip successful a stinker present and then. Who doesn’t? Has a fistful of times this season. See consecutive outings against the Patriots and Ravens. See his crippled against the Vikings. All losses. All precise non-Herbert performances. All atrocious showings.

The Raiders tin get to and fuss him. They besides request to.

The precise champion mentation of Herbert could beryllium excessively much.

“Excited for his career,” Carr said, “and to spot what helium does successful the future. I’ll ever basal for a feline similar that.”

Except for Sunday night.

Never then.

Ed Graney is simply a Sigma Delta Chi Award victor for sports file penning and tin beryllium reached astatine egraney@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-383-4618. He tin beryllium heard connected “The Press Box,” ESPN Radio 100.9 FM and 1100 AM, from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. Monday done Friday. Follow @edgraney connected Twitter.