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USATSI

Former Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. is hoping to hear his name called early in the 2024 NFL Draft, and eventually become one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. During a sit down with CBS Sports HQ at the NFL Scouting Combine, Penix was asked to give his top 5 signal-callers in the NFL today, and his list included a surprise.

Penix named a few quarterbacks who are objectively some of the best in the game, such as Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow. He also added San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, who led his team to the Super Bowl in his first full season as starter. For his No. 5 quarterback, Penix listed former Offensive Rookie of the Year Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers. 

"I feel like he's a very good passer as well," Penix said of Herbert. 

It's interesting that Penix included Herbert and Purdy over players like Dak Prescott, Josh Allen and Jalen Hurts, but maybe Penix is a "Herbert truther" -- predicting that he breaks out with Jim Harbaugh and Greg Roman -- and thinks Purdy can keep up what's been an improbable start to his NFL career.

Herbert has a 30-32 record as a starting quarterback, while averaging 24.4 points per game. It's the second-most team points per game registered by a quarterback with a losing record since 1950, so it's not like the Chargers aren't scoring enough. Herbert has the most losses by 1-3 points in a quarterback's first four seasons since 1950 with 14! 

Herbert has the most completions (1,613) and passing yards (17,223) in a quarterback's first four seasons in NFL history. He also tied Mahomes for the second-most passing touchdowns (114) in a player's first four seasons in NFL history. The Oregon product has flashed star potential early on, but is he a top 5 quarterback? Penix thinks so.

As for Purdy, he's gone from Mr. Irrelevant to QB1 for the reigning NFC champions. In 2023, he completed 69.4% of his passes for 4,280 yards, 31 touchdowns, 11 interceptions and a league-leading 9.2 yards per attempt. He also had San Francisco on the precipice of winning the Super Bowl (the 49ers ended up losing in overtime to the Chiefs).