NFL insider details milestone Justin Herbert must clear to complete injury comeback

Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert lived up to his tough reputation this week by returning to practice just three days after surgery.

Herbert had surgery on Monday to stabilize a fracture in his non-throwing hand. By Thursday, he was out there practicing with the Chargers as they prep to play the Philadelphia Eagles on the Week 14 edition of Monday Night Football.

Clearly limited in practice when it comes to under-center work, the Chargers will keep backup Trey Lance in the mix all week.

For Herbert, there are a few key hurdles to overcome so that he can actually suit up and play against the Eagles.

Justin Herbert injury status for Week 14 vs. Eagles

Herbert needs to show a few things on and off the field to be active for his Chargers’ game against the Eagles.

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero updated this list on Friday.

“There are still some milestones that Herbert is going to have to clear here,” Pelissero said. “He needs the swelling to come out of his non-throwing hand. But Herbert has said his goal is to play Monday night against the Eagles. Given his track record, all the injuries he has played through, it does seem like it is trending in the right direction.”

From @gmfb: The latest on Justin Herbert, Jalen Carter and Jayden Daniels, who is trending the right direction. @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/ZnBl7xtAtu
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) December 5, 2025

So, Herbert has the extra day over the weekend to get the swelling in the injured hand down. And that’s before the Chargers consider how it responds to actually taking hits on the field, protected in a cast-like glove or not.

Herbert returned to the game he initially suffered the injury during last week with a protective glove on his hand and didn’t take a snap from under center. He threw plenty in the win over the Las Vegas Raiders then, but that was right after the injury, not post-operation with screws and such in the repaired hand.

The Chargers will start Lance if necessary in primetime. But the current plan seems to be that Herbert gets the nod, with Lance coming in for short-yardage scenarios where going under center is more optimal.

Not fully ideal, but some Herbert is certainly better than no Herbert as the Chargers hope to stay alive in the playoff race.

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