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EL SEGUNDO, Calif -- Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert will make his preseason debut Saturday against the Rams. Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh said he expects starters to play up to eight plays but said not every starter will hit that number in the game, which will be the Chargers' third of the preseason. "Our guys want to play," Harbaugh said. "They want the first series of the season not to be the first series of the season." Herbert said he approached Harbaugh first about playing in the preseason. Before Pro Bowl left tackle Rashawn Slater's season-ending injury, the plan was for Herbert to play in the Chargers' second preseason game against the New Orleans Saints. "I wanted to go out there and seal a pass rush," Herbert said. "Because in practice as a quarterback, you don't always get the true feeling of the pass rush, so I thought it'd be helpful to go out there." Most of the team's starters were excused from last year's preseason games. This time around, however, Harbaugh said that the preseason snaps are beneficial, particularly for the offense, to get on the same page with timing and execution. For that reason, the only starters who won't play are safety Derwin James Jr. and linebacker Khalil Mack. "I know they'll be ready," Harbaugh said. Herbert has avoided all preseason action up to this point. During his rookie season, when he most likely would have seen action, he didn't have preseason games due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, in Harbaugh's first season as the Chargers' coach, Herbert dealt with a plantar fascia injury in his right foot. One projected starter who won't play Saturday is guard Mekhi Becton, who hasn't practiced since July 28 with an undisclosed injury that could linger into the beginning of the season. Harbaugh was noncommittal Thursday on Becton's status for the Chargers' Week 1 game against the Kansas City Chiefs in São Paulo. "He'll be ready when he's ready," Harbaugh said. "As you know, I'm not a doctor." Losing Becton to begin the season would be a significant loss for the Chargers, who already lost Slater to a season-ending patellar tendon tear.
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