Justin Herbert accidentally flames Quentin Johnston over involvement in offense

Nypost · Sep 24, 2026 · 425 words · By Thomas L Murray

headphones Listen to the eFinder podcast briefing

Generate a natural audio summary of this story

Daily briefing

What to know about Justin Herbert accidentally flames Quentin Johnston over involvement in offense

It’s only been two games into the season, but the Los Angeles Chargers are going through a rough patch.

Claims checked 14

Techniques found 0

Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center83%

Right17%

6 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

It’s only been two games into the season, but the Los Angeles Chargers are going through a rough patch.

Why it matters

Quarterback Justin Herbert was asked after practice on Wednesday if getting wide receiver Quentin Johnston more involved would be a way to fix their struggles — even though he believes Johnston is already heavily involved.

Common ground

“I think Mike [McDaniel] has already done a good job in trying to get him involved.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Follow-up questions

What concrete event or decision sits underneath the headline: Justin Herbert accidentally flames Quentin Johnston over involvement in offense?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that who was benched in the third quarter last week?
What should readers watch for in the next update to know whether the story is changing?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/09/24/sports/justin-herbert-believes-quentin-johnston-is…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 14 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

schedule Pending 4

verified Verified By Reference 3

cancel Disputed 2

check_circle Corroborated 2

info Single Source 2

help Insufficient Evidence 1

schedule

Claim 1: “who was benched in the third quarter last week.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 2: “Herbert has also taken a step back as his completion percentage is down to 59.3”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 3: “just ahead of Cooper Rush [5.2] of the Atlanta Falcons”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 4: “ranks 31st in the league in QBR [28.7]”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

help

Claim 5: “is also 22nd in total yards [289].”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found regarding the Chargers' rank in total yards or the specific number of 289.

cancel

Claim 6: “Unfortunately, only three of them were caught.”

DISPUTED

The claim states only three receptions were caught. Evidence from NFLTradeRumors.co states he has recorded seven receptions in 2026.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Jack Absolute Flies Again is a play by Richard Bean and Oliver Chris, based on Richard Brinsley Sheridan's 1775 play The Rivals, a comedy of manners.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Absolute_Flies_Again

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Johnny Cash at San Quentin is the 31st overall album and second live album by American singer-songwriter Johnny Cash, recorded live at San Quentin State Prison on February 24, 1969, and released on Ju…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/At_San_Quentin

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Quentin Johnston (born September 6, 2001), is an American professional football wide receiver for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the TCU…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quentin_Johnston

+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 7: “According to Fox Sports, Johnston has had 13 drops in his career”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

While sources mention that drops have been a problem for Johnston, none of the provided evidence specifies the exact number of 13 career drops.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — During his career, American film director Quentin Tarantino has worked on a number of projects which never progressed beyond the pre-production stage under his direction. Some of these projects fell i…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quentin_Tarantino's_unrealized…

+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 8: “including in 2024 when he had a career high of seven”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

No evidence provided specifies the number of drops Johnston had in the 2024 season.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — James Douglas Howard-Johnston (born 12 March 1942) is an English historian of the Byzantine Empire. He was University Lecturer in Byzantine studies at the University of Oxford. He is an emeritus fello…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Howard-Johnston

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Quentin Tarantino's Suicide Squad is a 2016 parody short fan film directed by Julian Higgins and written by Higgins and Kevin Brooks. It stars Eric Satterberg, Alex Marshall-Brown, Elliott Branch Jr.,…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quentin_Tarantino's_Suicide_Sq…

+ 3 more evidence sources

check_circle

Claim 9: “The team brought McDaniel in to be the new offensive coordinator”

CORROBORATED

Multiple cross-references from Nypost confirm that Mike McDaniel is the new offensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Chargers.

compare_arrows

cross reference SUPPORTS — Mike McDaniel [is the] Los Angeles Chargers offensive coordinator
https://nypost.com/2026/08/05/sports/chargers-oc-mike-mcdani…

compare_arrows

cross reference SUPPORTS — The Chargers have publicly framed the decision as part of a footwork overhaul under new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel
https://nypost.com/2026/06/08/sports/chargers-justin-herbert…

compare_arrows

cross reference SUPPORTS — Mike McDaniel agreed to become offensive coordinator of the Chargers
https://nypost.com/2026/05/11/sports/chargers-sign-former-br…

+ 2 more evidence sources

cancel

Claim 10: “the Chargers have been doing their best to find a way for Johnston to become involved in their offense even though he has 10 targets for the season.”

DISPUTED

The claim states Johnston has 10 targets for the season. However, evidence from NFLTradeRumors.co explicitly states that in 2026, Johnston has recorded 19 targets.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2023 NFL draft was the 88th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2023 season. The draft was held outside of Union Station in Kansas …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023_NFL_draft

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a degenerative brain disease linked to repeated head impacts. It has been found in 345 of 376 deceased former National Football League (NFL) players whose bra…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_NFL_players_with_chron…

menu_book

+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 11: “the Chargers selected Johnston in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Multiple sources, including Wikipedia and news reports, confirm Quentin Johnston was selected by the Chargers in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2025 season was the Los Angeles Chargers' 56th in the National Football League (NFL), their 66th overall, their tenth in the Greater Los Angeles Area, their sixth playing their home games at SoFi …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_Los_Angeles_Chargers_seas…

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 season is the Los Angeles Chargers' 57th in the National Football League (NFL), their 67th overall, their 11th in the Greater Los Angeles Area, their seventh playing their home games at SoFi …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Los_Angeles_Chargers_seas…

menu_book

+ 3 more evidence sources

check_circle

Claim 12: “their offense scored only three points in their Wild Card loss to the New England Patriots.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web search results (ESPN, box scores) confirm the Chargers scored 3 points in a 16-3 Wild Card loss to the New England Patriots on January 11, 2026.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Los Angeles Chargers 3 at New England Patriots 16 on January 11th, 2026 - Full team and player stats and box score
https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/202601110nw…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Jan 11, 2026 · Los Angeles Chargers vs New England Patriots Game Highlights | 2025 NFL Season Wild Card Round New England committed 13 yard penalty (Face Mask) Highlights from the Wild Card Weekend ma…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4w8LaKWuGM

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — New England committed 13 yard penalty (Face Mask)
https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/los-angeles-chargers-new-englan…

info

Claim 13: “and a career high in receptions of 55.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The evidence mentions a single-season high for receiving yards in 2024, but does not confirm a career high of 55 receptions.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Johnston has been unable to maintain consistent production over the course of a whole season to this point in his career.He has yet to stay healthy for the full duration of a season, and his single-se…
https://boltbeat.com/quentin-johnston-looming-breakout-still…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Quentin Johnston, Chargers. 13:22.Jayden Higgins, Texans. 19:55. RJ Harvey, Broncos.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-0KlKp2NrE

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Johnston's rookie year began on the sidelines. He started the season fourth on the depth chart, buried behind the Chargers' top three receivers: Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, and Joshua Palmer. Johnsto…
https://www.espn.com.au/nfl/story/_/id/38966106/los-angeles-…

info

Claim 14: “Los Angeles ranks 29th in the league for points, averaging 14 per game”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence does not contain the specific ranking (29th) or the average points per game (14) for the Chargers.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Get the latest Los Angeles Chargers news. Find news, video, standings, scores and schedule information for the Los Angeles Chargers.
https://www.nfl.com/teams/los-angeles-chargers/

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Las Vegas Raiders vs Los Angeles Chargers Game Highlights | 2026 NFL Season Week 2NFL2M • 12d agoLivePlaylist ()Mix (50+).Turnovers and scoring. 3:29. First half conclusion.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qg9GZqmTRto

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The Chargers ranked fourth in the NFL in turnovers (28) and tied for first in interceptions (18) last season, and those will be heavy points of emphasis with Bradley. “He’s getting us to focus on take…
https://www.latimes.com/sports/chargers/la-sp-chargers-gus-b…

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.