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Chargers Insider Reveals Offensive Line Shakeup After Injury Bombshell

Originally posted on LAFB Network | By Ryan Anderson | Last updated Aug 8, 2025 12:12 AM ET

The Los Angeles Chargers‘ The Los Angeles Chargers entered training camp with what many around the league considered the NFL’s best tackle duo. Now, just a week into August, that vision has been shattered.

Star left tackle Rashawn Slater will miss the entire 2025 season after tearing his patellar tendon during a non-contact team drill this week. The injury occurred during a modified 3-on-2 period — a practice setup meant to limit risk. As reported in vivid detail by Daniel Popper of The Athletic, Slater collapsed awkwardly after trying to absorb a bull rush from edge rusher Tuli Tuipulotu. The scene that followed — Slater writhing in pain, helped onto a cart, eventually burying his head in a towel — left teammates and coaches visibly shaken.

The injury is a gut punch on multiple levels. Slater had just become the highest-paid offensive lineman in NFL history days earlier, inking a four-year, $114 million extension. He was the lynchpin of a rebuilt offensive identity under new head coach Jim Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Greg Roman. Now the Chargers are forced into contingency mode.

The Chargers Re-Shape O-line After Rashawn Slater Injury

Chargers Insider Reveals Offensive Line Shakeup After Injury Bombshell 1 Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

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According to Popper, the team will slide second-year tackle Joe Alt from right to left tackle — a significant but not unfamiliar adjustment. Alt, the former fifth-overall pick, played three seasons at left tackle at Notre Dame and filled in for Slater during Week 18 last season without allowing a single pressure. Throughout camp, he’s continued to take reps on the left side, especially while Slater was sidelined with a foot blister and negotiating his new contract.

“He’s on his way to being a special, special player,” Roman said of Alt earlier this summer.

With Alt now protecting Justin Herbert’s blind side, the Chargers will turn to veteran Trey Pipkins III at right tackle. Pipkins was initially drafted to play tackle but started 15 games at right guard last season as part of a short-lived experiment. He reverts to his natural position now and will be counted on for stability, even if the move exposes the Chargers’ lack of depth inside.

Chargers Insider Reveals Offensive Line Shakeup After Injury Bombshell 2 Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Zion Johnson and Bradley Bozeman return at left guard and center, respectively — though both were part of an underwhelming interior last season. Free-agent signee Mekhi Becton was expected to start at right guard but hasn’t practiced since July 28 due to what the team is calling a “not-severe” issue. With Becton’s status unclear and Bozeman also missing practice Thursday, Harbaugh and GM Joe Hortiz may be forced to dip back into the free-agent or trade markets.

Popper’s reporting underscores the magnitude of the setback. Harbaugh, Hortiz, and other key decision-makers were seen in deep discussion after Thursday’s practice, their mood somber — a stark contrast to the optimism that surrounded this team just a week ago.

The plan was simple: protect Herbert, lean into a dominant run game, and control the trenches with one of the league’s most complete offensive lines. Now, the Chargers are left hoping that their depth and preparation can withstand the loss of a franchise cornerstone.

As Roman put it just last month: “We definitely have the ingredients. But we’ve got to stay healthy — like every other team in the NFL.”

That goal is already in jeopardy.

This article first appeared on LAFB Network and was syndicated with permission.

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