The Los Angeles Chargers took another hit this week, and this one came from outside the building. The New York Giants signed Nikko Reed off the Chargers’ practice squad, pulling away a depth corner who had been one of the more promising young finds on the roster.
Reed entered the league in 2025 as a popular undrafted free agent signing for Los Angeles, then made the 53-man roster that August. He appeared in five games and, by all accounts, had put himself in position to develop into a useful depth piece.
Now he’s gone, and the timing is rough for a Chargers team already dealing with a shaky start. Los Angeles was thumped by the Arizona Cardinals in the opener, lost Ladd McConkey to an injury in the process, and entered Week 2 with early injury reports that included names such as Teair Tart. The Chargers are also staring at a Week 2 AFC West meeting with the Las Vegas Raiders before a brutal seven-game stretch that will likely shape their playoff outlook.
The move by the Giants leaves the Chargers thinner at cornerback on the practice squad, where Isas Waxter and new arrival Kaiir Elam are now the only options. On the active roster, the team still has Derwin James, Cam Hart, Tarheeb Still, Rodney Shelley, Donte Jackson and Deane Leonard.
That depth was part of the appeal all along. The Chargers were so loaded at cornerback during final cuts that they even traded one away, and Reed’s exit is a reminder that teams with that kind of talent tend to get picked over. Once injuries start piling up around the league, other clubs come calling.
Leonard’s presence on this week’s injury report makes the situation even more notable. It would not be a surprise if the Chargers start looking for additional help at a premium spot that just lost some of its cushion.
There is a silver lining here, at least in terms of how Los Angeles has handled the position. The Chargers have shown they can identify corners, and part of the reason Reed ended up on the practice squad in the first place was the breakout season from another undrafted success story, Shelley. They’ll keep finding more.
Still, when the need is immediate, losing Reed matters. That kind of depth is hard to replace on the fly, especially in a season that already feels unsettled with Chris O’Leary stepping in at coordinator after Jesse Minter left to serve as head coach of the Baltimore Ravens.
In Other News...
Chargers Suddenly Have A Week 2 Problem They Cant Ignore
The Chargers are already dealing with the kind of early-season attrition that can change a game plan before it ever gets off the ground. After losing starting center Tyler Biadasz to a season-ending injury in the preseason and then opening Week 2 on the back of a loss to the Arizona Cardinals, the injury list keeps growing in ways that touch both sides of the ball. Wide receiver Keandre Lambert-Smith landed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury, and the team responded by bringing in Gary Jennings and Marquez Valdes-Scantling to help shore up the receiving group.
Defensively, the front is also worth watching as the Chargers turn their attention to the Las Vegas Raiders. Teair Tart and Dalvin Tomlinson were both limited in practice because of injuries, leaving Los Angeles to manage another round of uncertainty along the line. For a team trying to settle in early, the issue is no longer just who can play, but how many moving parts it can absorb before the calendar even gets comfortable. [Read more 🡒]
Chargers Could Be Forced To Lean On Brenen Thompson Early
Ladd McConkeys rib injury has suddenly made the Chargers receiver rotation a lot thinner than it looked a week ago. McConkey did not practice midweek, and with KeAndre Lambert-Smith now on injured reserve, the margin for error at wideout has shrunk enough that the team may need to lean harder on its younger options for the upcoming game.
Brenen Thompson is the name that jumps out if McConkey cannot go. The rookie has made his reputation on speed, and that trait becomes even more valuable when a passing game needs someone to stretch the field in a hurry. Even if the Chargers choose to spread the snaps around, Thompson looks like the player with the clearest path to a bigger workload in a receiver room that suddenly needs answers. [Read more 🡒]
Chargers Suddenly Have An Early Roster Problem They Can't Ignore
A disappointing Week 1 outing has put the Chargers in a position where roster questions are already harder to ignore than they hoped in September. With draft picks and salary-cap space available, Los Angeles is being mentioned as a team that could be active in the trade market, and the early focus is squarely on shoring up a defensive line that looks thin and vulnerable to injury concerns.
Kristopher Knox pointed to Titans lineman Solomon Thomas as a possible name for the Chargers to consider, which fits the kind of move this front office may need to explore if it wants more reliable depth up front. The challenge now is not just identifying help, but deciding how aggressive to be this early in the season, especially when the first game has already exposed a weakness the Chargers cant afford to let linger. [Read more 🡒]