Rashawn Slater is back in the mix for the Chargers, and that alone gives the 2026 season a different feel. The bigger question is whether Los Angeles should expect him to look like the same All-Pro left tackle right away after missing a full year with a torn patellar tendon.
That’s where the conversation gets tricky. Slater has already shown he can be one of the best left tackles in football when he’s healthy, which is exactly why the bar around him is so high.
Chargers fans want the dominant version back immediately, the one who earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro recognition. But after nearly 300 days of rehabilitation, that might be a lot to ask all at once.
The encouraging part is that Slater has done everything he can to make the comeback work. He was on the field for OTAs and minicamp, took part in workouts and said he was feeling great. Jim Harbaugh also said he expects Slater to be ready for training camp, which is a strong sign given the severity of the injury.
Even so, being available and being back to elite form are not the same thing.
Patellar tendon injuries are especially tough for offensive linemen because their game depends so heavily on explosion, balance and lower-body strength. Slater may be cleared, but there’s still a real chance of rust after sitting out meaningful football for a year. The little things - timing, footwork and reaction speed - usually sharpen only after game reps start piling up.
That doesn’t mean the Chargers need to panic or dial back expectations for good. Slater’s history still gives them plenty of reason to believe he can climb back to the top tier.
Before the injury, he had already established himself as one of the league’s premier pass protectors, and his rookie season was spectacular. When he’s out there, Justin Herbert has had much cleaner pockets.
Slater’s game is built on technique, leverage and football IQ as much as raw athleticism, and that matters when a player is trying to get back to his best.
The setup around him is better, too. Joe Alt is healthy on the other side, Tyler Biadasz is in at center instead of Bradley Bozeman, and the offensive line should be significantly improved overall.
That matters because Slater won’t have to be the one holding everything together by himself. A stronger group should help the whole unit play faster and with more confidence.
And there’s another important point here: Slater doesn’t need to be fully back to his old self in Week 1 for the Chargers to feel the difference. If he starts the season at 90 percent and keeps building from there, that still puts Los Angeles in a much better spot than it was during the injury-riddled 2025 campaign.
So yes, it’s fair to expect Slater to eventually look like one of the NFL’s top left tackles again. It’s not fair to assume he’ll hit that level instantly after missing an entire season.
If he stays healthy, there’s every reason to think his best football is still ahead of him. The Chargers don’t need perfection on opening day. They just need their franchise left tackle back on the field.
In Other News...
Chargers Already Seem Done With This Risky Camp Gamble
Ben Clevelands short stay with the Chargers never got off the ground, and the reasons why were never hard to miss. The guard arrived in Los Angeles with a history that already carried plenty of baggage, then found himself back in the news after an arrest in Georgia tied to speeding and an alleged violation of conditions related to a limited driving permit.
For a team trying to sort out its camp roster, Cleveland represented the kind of gamble that can look manageable on paper and far less so once the off-field concerns start piling up. He was a former Ravens draft pick who had not yet played a snap for the Chargers, and his background has included a DUI arrest, a suspension for violating the leagues substance abuse policy, and a divorce filing that cited adultery claims his wife denied. [Read more 🡒]
Justin Herbert Just Shared A Huge Personal Update With Chargers Fans
Justin Herbert has spent the fall trying to keep the Chargers on track, but his latest headline came away from the field. The quarterback and pop singer Madison Beer have been a public couple for months now, with the two showing up together at a string of events and Herbert occasionally sharing his affection for her on social media.
Their relationship moved into the open on Instagram in April 2026, after first starting the previous August, and the pair have continued to build a very visible profile since then. One of the photos shared in the update showed Beer wearing a ring on her left hand, a detail that instantly turned a personal milestone into the kind of news Chargers fans were bound to notice. [Read more 🡒]
Chargers Enter Camp With Everything Riding On Justin Herbert Now
Training camp opens July 29 with a different look around Justin Herbert, and the Chargers are leaning into it. Jim Harbaugh and Herbert are entering their third season together, and the roster around them has been reshaped with new offensive help and a fresh voice calling plays, all in service of getting the offense to match the ambition the franchise has been selling since Harbaugh arrived.
ESPN analyst Kris Rhim framed the moment as one loaded with urgency, and it is easy to see why. Los Angeles has added pieces that should matter right away, from help at tight end to the return of both tackles, while the defense also has a new coordinator in Chris O'Leary. For Herbert, though, the conversation keeps circling back to what the Chargers have not yet done under this regime, and camp now begins with the expectation that the next step has to be the one that changes everything. [Read more 🡒]