Chargers OC Greg Roman: ‘Imagine Justin Herbert with a great running game’

The Los Angeles Chargers hope new head coach Jim Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Greg Roman can steer Justin Herbert & Co. in the right direction. In Roman’s mind, it’s all about complementing their star quarterback.

“Can you imagine Justin Herbert with a great running game? … We don’t know, but I can imagine what it might look like. So that’s kind of the vision,” Roman told ESPN on Thursday.

Roman last coached for the Baltimore Ravens, serving as their offensive coordinator from 2019-22 and an offensive assistant from 2017-18. Assisted by the dual-threat talents of quarterback Lamar Jackson, now a two-time NFL MVP, Baltimore finished no worse than third in the NFL in regular season rushing yards in each of Roman’s four seasons running the show.

Herbert, the 2020 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and a one-time Pro Bowler, is coming off the worst season of his four-year career, one which ended after a Week 14 finger injury. He totaled 3,134 passing yards, 20 passing touchdowns, seven interceptions and a 93.2 passer rating, while completing 65.1% of his passes. Herbert also rushed for 228 yards and three touchdowns.

On the whole, the Chargers averaged just 232.8 passing yards (13th in the NFL), 96.6 rushing yards (25th), 329.4 total yards (18th) and 20.4 points (21st) per game. They’re coming off a 5-12 season.

“I think in this league, you can really, really help dictate the defenses if you have a strong running attack,” Roman said. “If you really talk to most defensive coordinators in this league and got ’em off to the side when they’re playing a really good running team, they’re sweating a little bit. They’re sleeping a little less that week.”

Running back Austin Ekeler, who has been equally vital to the Chargers passing game as their running back, is coming off a rough 2023 campaign that saw him miss three games due to an ankle injury and log just 3.5 yards per carry, by far the worst mark of his career (he registered 4.2 yards per carry in 2019).

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The 28-year-old Ekeler is set to hit free agency, where he’ll join a stacked running back group that also includes Derrick Henry, Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs, Tony Pollard, D’Andre Swift and Gus Edwards, among others. Meanwhile, running back Joshua Kelly, who flashed promise last season for the Chargers, is also an impending free agent.

As for the Chargers’ ability to fill out their running back room this offseason, the team is over the salary cap, but also owns the No. 5, 37 and 69 picks in the 2024 NFL Draft.

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