{"id":240546,"date":"2025-07-27T16:31:17","date_gmt":"2025-07-27T16:31:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/240546\/"},"modified":"2025-07-27T16:31:17","modified_gmt":"2025-07-27T16:31:17","slug":"rb-nyheim-hines-to-make-nfl-return-with-chargers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/240546\/","title":{"rendered":"RB Nyheim Hines To Make NFL Return With Chargers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Veteran running back Nyheim Hines<\/a> is returning to the NFL with the Chargers, per ESPN\u2019s Adam Schefter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Hines has not played since the 2022 season after tearing his ACL in a freak jet skiing accident in July 2023. He signed with the Browns last offseason and practiced for three weeks in October<\/a> before being shut down for the year<\/a>. Now, he will finally get back on the field in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been a long road back,\u201d said Hines (via The Exhibit\u2019s Josina Anderson<\/a>). \u201cI\u2019ve watched [the Chargers] my whole life because of Philip Rivers<\/a>, and always have liked the team. I also think I\u2019ve fit their system for years, so I\u2019m excited for this opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Originally a 2018 fourth-round pick by the Colts, Hines immediately carved out a third-down role as a rookie and became one of the most consistent receiving backs in the league, logging at least 40 receptions and 300 receiving yards in each of his first four season. He signed a three-year, $18.6MM extension with the Colts in 2021 before being dealt to the Bills at the 2022 trade deadline. Hines did not have much of an impact in Buffalo, and his offseason injury has kept him on the sidelines since.<\/p>\n

Now, Hines will join a young Chargers running back room as its oldest player.\u00a0Veteran free agent signing Najee Harris<\/a> is set to lead the group \u2013 once he recovers from a freak injury of his own<\/a> \u2013 and the team hopes first-round pick\u00a0Omarion Hampton can be an effective change-of-pace back and build on his impressive 2024 season as a ballcarrier and pass-catcher.<\/p>\n

However, Harris\u2019 receiving numbers in Pittsburgh were inflated by constant checkdowns by a rotating cadre of Steelers\u2019 quarterbacks, and\u00a0Jim Harbaugh<\/a> may not trust a rookie to protect\u00a0Justin Herbert<\/a> on third downs. In addition to his desire to contribute as a returner<\/a>, Hines could have a path to a role in Los Angeles as a pass-catching back who, in his career, has more targets (309) than carries (306) and more yards through the air (1,778) than on the ground (1,202).<\/p>\n

First, he will have to prove that he is all the way back from his knee injury. Hines was healthy enough in May to work out for the Texans, and his signing in Los Angeles indicates that his medical passed muster.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Veteran running back Nyheim Hines is returning to the NFL with the Chargers, per ESPN\u2019s Adam Schefter. Hines…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":240547,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2064],"tags":[241,7,1014,262,2444,2443,6,9624,3571],"class_list":{"0":"post-240546","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-los-angeles-chargers","8":"tag-chargers","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-los-angeles","11":"tag-los-angeles-chargers","12":"tag-losangeles","13":"tag-losangeleschargers","14":"tag-nfl","15":"tag-nyheim-hines","16":"tag-transactions"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/114926156732437020","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240546","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=240546"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240546\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/240547"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=240546"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=240546"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=240546"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}