Justin Herbert's Status for Chargers' Finale vs. Broncos Discussed by HC Jim Harbaugh

With the Los Angeles Chargers locked into a playoff spot and playing for nothing but seeding in their regular-season finale against the Denver Broncos, quarterback Justin Herbert will not take the field.

Head coach Jim Harbaugh told reporters Monday that Herbert will not start against the Broncos.

This is surely welcome news for Denver, which can clinch the AFC's No. 1 seed and the first-round bye that comes with it with a win over Los Angeles.

The New England Patriots and Jacksonville Jaguars would both have a chance at the coveted No. 1 seed if the Broncos lost, but that feels far less likely since Herbert is not going to play. 

Herbert threw for 300 yards in the Chargers' Week 3 win over Denver earlier in the season but will not have a chance at an encore performance in the rematch. Perhaps the two sides will face each other again in the playoffs, which would once again put Herbert under the spotlight against one of the league's top defenses.

From Los Angeles' perspective, this move isn't that surprising.

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Herbert suffered a broken bone in his non-throwing hand in November, which required surgery. He also seemed to be dealing with some discomfort during the team's Week 17 loss to the Houston Texans.

Houston sacked him five times Saturday, so taking Week 18 off will give the quarterback more time to move closer to 100 percent by the time the Chargers take the field for the playoffs.

Los Angeles is tied with the Texans and Buffalo Bills at 11-5 as the three wild cards in the AFC. The trio will be the Nos. 5 through 7 seeds depending on the Week 18 results, but the Texans have head-to-head wins and tiebreakers over both.

Entering the regular-season finale, the Chargers have the tiebreaker over the Bills.