Los Angeles Chargers left tackle Rashawn Slater suffered a season-ending tear to his patellar tendon during Thursday’s practice, less than two weeks after he signed a $114 million contract extension.
Slater’s recovery from such an injury will likely be a long and hard one, and it’s not clear at this time when he can be expected to return to his Pro Bowl form from 2024.
Prior to Thursday, the Chargers thought they had their offensive line intact and ready to go for their second season under head coach Jim Harbaugh. Now they’re left to reshuffle the deck and attempt to replace one of the best left tackles in the NFL.
Slater’s injury is going to negatively affect the Chargers. That can’t be ignored. But that’s not to say they can’t have a functional offensive line, if not one that ranks in the top half of the league. It’s hard to argue, though, that they’re on equal footing with where they were before Slater’s injury. In the rough-and-tumble AFC West, where all four teams could compete this season, that blow can be magnified significantly.
Factoring all of that, here’s a look at how Thursday’s news impacts the 2025 Chargers, who are coming off their best season since 2018 and have been viewed as dark-horse Super Bowl contenders by some analysts, and who could take over at LT in Slater’s absence.