National Football League

Who Is The NFL's Most Underrated Player, Jalen Hurts or Justin Herbert?

Updated Sep. 14, 2025 10:37 p.m. ET

The battle to be the most underrated player in the NFL isn't one that players seek to be a part of, but if you asked the "FOX NFL Sunday" crew, they'll tell you that it's a heated race this season.

Howie Long declared that Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert is the most underrated player in the league following his impressive performance against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 1.

"[Jim] Harbaugh last week did the unconventional," Long said. "They decided to throw it. Herbert, who's underrated in my mind, was great. They threw the ball all over the yard. … They threw the ball over 60% of the time. It's very un-Jim Harbaugh-like to do that. Impressive win."

Herbert arguably had the most impressive performance of his career in the Chargers' 27-21 victory over the Chiefs. He completed 25 of 34 passes for 318 yards and three touchdowns, giving him a 131.7 passer rating. He also had 32 rushing yards, with 19 of them coming on a key third-down run that sealed the victory for Los Angeles.

Following the win, FOX Sports' Eric D. Williams ranked Herbert second in his MVP stock watch. Though Herbert's performance earned him rave reviews this week, Michael Strahan disagreed with the notion that he's underrated.

"I don't think Herbert is underrated," Strahan said bluntly. "Everyone talks about how great he is."

Instead, Strahan believes another quarterback from the 2020 NFL Draft class — Jalen Hurts — has the claim to be the league's most underrated player.

The Philadelphia Eagles quarterback has earned a fair number of accolades in his career, being named second-team All-Pro once and a Pro Bowler twice. He also won MVP in the Eagles' blowout win over the Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX.

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With performances like that, Long sees the case for Hurts to be recognized as the NFL's most underrated player.

"It doesn't look like Lamar [Jackson], Josh Allen or maybe Patrick Mahomes — but he's a winner," Long said. "He's been in two Super Bowls. You could make the argument that he was the best player in both Super Bowls. Last year, (Chiefs defensive coordinator) Steve Spagnuolo made the choice to take away the run game and force Jalen Hurts to beat him. He did. He was the MVP. He'll do it anyway that it's required."

To Long's point, Hurts completed 17 of 22 passes for 221 yards and two touchdowns to go with 72 rushing yards and a rushing score in the Super Bowl LIX win. In Super Bowl LVII, Hurts completed 27 of 38 passes for 304 yards and a touchdown to go with 70 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns in the 38-35 loss to the Chiefs.

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As Hurts has shined in big moments for the Eagles, there aren't many other quarterbacks Rob Gronkowski would want to go to battle with more than him.

"I really like Jalen Hurts," Gronkowski said. "He's smart. He's a humble guy. He's always hungry to get better as a player. That's what keeps him consistent in the winning category. This offense runs through Jalen Hurts.

"Jalen Hurts doesn't make those mistakes."

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