The 2026 NFL trade deadline has passed. The Chargers, who were reluctant to trade away any of their players, ended up trading one: linebacker Daiyan Henley.
Henley was the only Chargers player traded before Tuesday’s deadline. Many expected the Chargers to be sellers, but for the most part, they stood pat.
The Chargers received a ton of calls on some of their premier players, including Justin Herbert.
Rumors circulated that teams were calling about Herbert’s availability, especially the Chargers. According to NFL insider Jordan Schultz, the Vikings inquired about Herbert, but the Bolts shut those talks down.
"The #Vikings also inquired about Justin Herbert, Daniel Jones and Geno Smith before striking a deal with the #Raiders for Kirk Cousins, per
multiple league sources.
"The Chargers, I’m told, immediately shut down all inquiries for Herbert, who also has a no-trade clause,” Schultz wrote.
Last week, NFL insider Albert Breer named the Vikings as a team that should take a swing on Herbert.
“It can’t hurt to make that phone call if you’re the Vikings,” Breer said. “Do I think Joe Hortiz is going to say ‘no way, we can’t trade a franchise quarterback,’ yeah, I think he’s going to say no way.”
Herbert has been nearly unrecognizable this season. After spending his first six years in the league establishing himself as one of the NFL's premier quarterbacks, the 28-year-old has taken a dramatic step backward.
His statistics paint a troubling picture. Herbert ranks 23rd in passing yards (1,398), tied for 28th in passing touchdowns (five), and 31st in interceptions (10), while completing just 61.8 percent of his passes.
The offensive line hasn't done him many favors, either. Herbert has been sacked 31 times through eight games and is on pace to eclipse his career-high sack total from last season.
The Chargers are poised to do what they can to turn things around; however, they look dead in the water.
Herbert's disappointing play is just one of many issues the Chargers face this season.
This article originally appeared on Chargers Wire: Chargers reportedly shut down Vikings' Justin Herbert trade inquiry
