A year ago, the Los Angeles Chargers lost their best offensive lineman on a practice field before the season ever started. This summer, they expect to get him back on one.
Rashawn Slater tore his patellar tendon during an 11-on-11 drill at training camp last August, when a teammate fell onto his leg, and underwent season-ending surgery. Speaking during the offseason program, the All-Pro left tackle said he expects to be medically cleared by the time camp opens, though he was candid that the exact terms are not yet set: “I’m not sure exactly what kind of limitations there will be. I know I’ll be cleared.”
The timeline he described is the encouraging part. As of early June, Slater put the recovery at 300 days — “just been stacking day after day, and it’s paying off” — and said he feels “fantastic.” A patellar tendon tear is among the harder lower-body injuries for a lineman to return from, so a player talking about padded practice rather than a setback is the update the Chargers wanted to hear.
What it means for the line is significant. With Slater and Joe Alt both expected to be available early, Los Angeles projects to open camp with its bookend tackles healthy at the same time — something it could not say for most of last season. Protecting Justin Herbert is the entire point, and the front line looks deeper than it did a year ago.
The caution is worth keeping. “Expected to be cleared” is not “cleared,” and the team may still ease Slater back with limited reps early in camp rather than throw him into every rep on day one. For a franchise that has watched more than one promising season thin out on the injury report, patience with a returning cornerstone is not timidity — it is the lesson.
Rookies report July 23 and veterans July 28, with camp at The Bolt opening the following week. Slater’s first full practice, whenever it comes, will be the one to watch.
