Khalil Mack Had Encouraging Message for Justin Herbert After Rough Playoff Showing

The Chargers fell to the Patriots in the wild-card round on Sunday.

Khalil Mack had kind words for his quarterback after a tough outing on Sunday. / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Justin Herbert’s playoff woes continued during the Chargers’ 16-3 loss to the Patriots on Sunday. A year after throwing four picks in a postseason loss to the Texans, Herbert struggled against a New England defense that left a number of Chargers puzzled throughout the game.

Herbert finished the game 19-of-31 for 159 yards and a fumble. Though Herbert was under duress like he has been all season—he was sacked six times on Sunday—he also missed multiple opportunities and open receivers that could have made the difference in a defensive battle.

More: Jim Harbaugh Must Make Changes to Save Justin Herbert From the Chargers

After the loss, Herbert was asked if he has the confidence to get a playoff win and go on a run in the future. He replied, “I don’t know. I haven’t figured it out yet and it hasn’t happened. So, we’ll have to reevaluate and see what happens.”

Veteran linebacker Khalil Mack shared his thoughts on that comment from Herbert on Monday while speaking to reporters back in Los Angeles. "Justin, he’s very hard on himself. You want to do all you can to play great for a guy like him. Special dude, he’s got the heart of a champion,” Mack said. "He’s just got to take that step back and figure it out for what it is that he wants to do and how he wants to be respected and viewed in this league. It just starts with the man in the mirror and not focusing on what everybody else thinks.”

Mack continued, “We know who he is and what he brings to this team. A grinder, a warrior. Special, man, special. I can’t wait to see it all be put together. That’s just my hope and my prayer and my wish for him to see it all being put together and him being placed in a position to succeed at a very high level.”

Herbert has fallen to 0-3 in postseason play, and the conversation surrounding him once again heading into next year will be about his inability to win in the playoffs. Though he’s made clutch plays in the regular season and shown what he is capable of, the narrative around him won’t change until he gets a win in the postseason.

“He needs to take a step back and see who he is, see how great he is, and not putting everything on his shoulders,” Mack said. “He wants to win. He wants to be great for us and this organization. And we all want to be great for him. And he's not in it alone. He's not in it by himself."

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