The Las Vegas Raiders will kick off their 2024 regular season in about five weeks and the status of the quarterback for their Week 1 opponent, the Los Angeles Chargers, is in question.
According to ESPN's Kris Rhim, quarterback Justin Herbert has been diagnosed with a plantar fascia injury, which will leave him in a walking boot for the next two weeks.
From there, Herbert will be on a "gradual return to play protocol" and is expected to be ready for the start of the season. However, being ready for the start of the season involves Herbert avoiding setbacks on his road to recovery, and as we know that is never guaranteed, especially when it comes to a plantar fascia injury.
Even if Herbert is healthy enough to play in Week 1, he will do so after having missed significant practice time, which does not bode well for a quarterback trying to learn a new offense. That could lead to a messy start that will only make things more difficult for him against a very talented and possibly elite Raiders defense.
If Herbert can't take the field in Week 1, it would be a gift for the Raiders, who would likely face Easton Stick in that scenario. The Chargers also have Max Duggan and Casey Bauman on their roster, but Stick is the favorite to win the backup job.
The Raiders are familiar with Stick, as he started in the 63-21 shellacking Las Vegas handed Los Angeles in Week 15 last season. Stick completed 23-of-32 passes for 257 yards and three touchdowns to one interception in that game.
While not terrible numbers, Stick didn't really get going until the third quarter when the game was well out of hand. Even on his best day, Stick couldn't approach what Herbert can do on a football field.
