Justin Herbert looked as comfortable as he wanted to be in the Dallas Cowboys' loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. That has become the norm this season for Matt Eberflus' defense. If Dallas made J.J. McCarthy look like a Pro Bowler, it's no surprise a player of Herbert's caliber picked them apart.
It’s been the story of the season. The Cowboys generate little to no pressure on opposing quarterbacks, and the results keep getting worse. Justin Herbert completed 79.3 percent of his passes against Dallas, his highest mark of the season.
There have been many soul-crushing stats, but one shows exactly why Matt Eberflus shouldn't even get two more games to redeem himself. As Joseph Hoyt from the Dallas Morning News noted on X, the Cowboys' defense had added to its list of firsts this season.
This was the first time Justin Herbert wasn't sacked in 358 days.
— Joseph Hoyt (@JoeJHoyt) December 21, 2025
The Cowboys' defense ended a long streak of Justin Herbert sacks
Justin Herbert has never been an easy quarterback to bring down. Anyone who's watched him since his days at Oregon knows this. But this wasn’t simply about failing to get Herbert on the ground. Plenty of teams have managed to sack him this season, just not the Cowboys. And they had a prime opportunity to keep the Herbert-sacked trend going.
The Chargers' offensive line has been banged up since the beginning of the season. Star left tackle Rashawn Slater suffered a torn patellar tendon before the season, and stud right tackle Joe Alt suffered a season-ending ankle injury in November of this season.
No one is saying it should've been a field day for the Cowboys' pass rushers in the game, but not being able to put any heat on Herbert is a brutal look for Eberflus. Not having Micah Parsons obviously hurts, but every defense has feasted on this Chargers offensive line.
In Eberflus' defense, Dallas' personnel isn't good enough. Jadeveon Clowney and Donovan Ezeiruaku have shown out at points, but it's not enough firepower. Jerry Jones deserves to wear a lot of this as well.
Jones’ tone has shifted dramatically from earlier in the season, when he spoke about wanting Matt Eberflus “in the foxhole” with him. That's a good thing, but it’s come far too late. The season is already lost, and the Eberflus hire sits atop a list of decisions Cowboys fans won’t soon forgive Jones for.