EL SEGUNDO \u2014 Trey Lance\u2019s response was short and to the point when Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh told him earlier this week he, not Justin Herbert, would start at quarterback in the regular-season finale Sunday against the Denver Broncos, only his sixth career start in four NFL seasons.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s go,\u201d Harbaugh said Lance told him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m super excited,\u201d Lance said when he spoke with reporters Wednesday. \u201cJust thankful, very thankful that I\u2019m going to get the opportunity to get on the field and start a game this year and go out and make the most of it. Get a win, obviously, is the goal, and to keep guys healthy. Yeah, I\u2019m super excited.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harbaugh didn\u2019t share Herbert\u2019s exact words after telling him he wouldn\u2019t be the starter, the backup or even suit up for the game<\/a> after the Chargers\u2019 coaching staff and the team\u2019s medical personnel determined it would be best for him not to risk further damage to his fractured left, non-throwing hand.<\/p>\n The Chargers (11-5) want Herbert at his best for their upcoming AFC wild-card game<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cFew words,\u201d Harbaugh said of his talk with Herbert, who last missed a start when he was sidelined four games by a finger injury near the end of the 2023 season. \u201cRespected our decision. It\u2019s not like it\u2019s a week off. He was the last person to leave the building (Tuesday) night and one of the first in (Wednesday) morning.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s not as if the Chargers\u2019 game against the Broncos is meaningless. Far from it. A victory over the Broncos plus the right set of results around the AFC on Sunday could vault the Chargers from their current position of sixth in the seedings to fifth. Or it could keep them at sixth. A loss would drop them into seventh.<\/p>\n A victory for Denver would clinch the top-seeded spot in the AFC.<\/p>\n Last season, with a playoff berth already clinched, the Chargers started Herbert for their regular-season finale, a 34-20 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders that moved them into the fifth-seeded position, a game in which Herbert threw for 346 yards and two touchdowns.<\/p>\n So why the change in philosophy?<\/p>\n \u201cEvery year is different and the circumstances are different,\u201d Harbaugh said.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also a meaningful game for Lance, a first-round draft pick of the San Francisco 49ers who has played only 15 games since he was selected third in the 2021 NFL draft. He has played three games in relief of Herbert this season. His last start was the final game of the 2024 season while with the Dallas Cowboys.<\/p>\n Lance, 25, has taken 29 snaps this season, completing 7 of 13 passes for 90 yards. He\u2019s also scrambled eight times for 16 yards. He took first-team reps in practice after Herbert fractured his hand Nov. 30 against the Raiders and underwent surgery to stabilize it the following day.<\/p>\n