Jim Harbaugh reveals how Chargers will deal with devastating Rashawn Slater injury

Just 10 days after signing a record four-year, $114 million extension with the Los Angeles Chargers, offensive tackle Rashawn Slater suffered a season-ending injury in practice on August 7, throwing Jim Harbaugh’s 2025 plans into turmoil.

Rashawn Slater’s record-breaking Chargers deal

Slater’s new deal, worth an average of $28.5 million per year, makes him the highest-paid offensive lineman in NFL history. But the 26-year-old won’t get the chance to prove he’s worth the outlay anytime soon after tearing his patellar tendon, a serious injury that some experts say can be more damaging than a ruptured ACL.

The Chargers’ star tackle played in 15 games last season. In 2022, he missed the final 14 games with a torn biceps. Drafted in the first round in 2021, Slater earned a Pro Bowl selection last year and allowed just three sacks and 22 pressures in 244 pass-blocking snaps.

Harbaugh: “A gut punch to the solar plexus”

Speaking to reporters on Friday, Harbaugh admitted losing Slater was a significant blow for his team.

“It’s like a gut punch right to the solar plexus,” confessed the Chargers coach. “It takes the wind out of you. You can’t even talk too much. You don’t really have the words or able to think about anything else.

“I just feel bad for Rashawn. I know how much he’s put into it, how much he’s trained, and I also know how he’ll attack the rehab and train, and he’ll be back. Not this season, but I know he’ll be back.”

Lineup changes caused by Slater injury

Harbaugh didn’t shy away from revealing how the Chargers will line up without their top offensive tackle. Joe Alt will move from right tackle to left, with Trey Pipkins stepping in at right tackle.

“We know that our best five, right now, is Joe Alt, Zion Johnson, Brad Bozeman, projected Mekhi Becton and then Trey Pipkins,” he said. “That’s what we’ll start [with]. Nothing set in stone, but that’s where we’re at.”

Chargers’ 2025 preseason and Week 1 schedule

The Chargers open their preseason against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, August 10, then face the Los Angeles Rams on Saturday, August 16, and the San Francisco 49ers on Saturday, August 23.

Week 1 brings a high-profile clash with the Kansas City Chiefs at Corinthians Arena on Friday, September 5.

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