Chargers LT Rashawn Slater Undergoes Surgery, Heading To IR

Slater underwent surgery to address the issue Thursday, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets, adding that this tightrope procedure is aimed at accelerating the sixth-year tackle’s recovery. Nevertheless, Slater will be out for at least four games.

The Chargers are 0-4, and they are in a grueling schedule stretch. Following their loss in Seattle, the Bolts face the Broncos, Chiefs, Rams, Texans and Ravens. Slater’s absence does not look to be especially impactful for this Chargers iteration — which certainly does not look like a candidate to follow the 1992 Bolts as the second team to reach the playoffs after an 0-4 start — but the left tackle’s injury issues are piling up. How he bounces back from this will be pivotal for the Chargers’ long-term future at this premium position.

While Slater is only 27, he has lost nearly two full seasons to injury thus far as a pro. The 2021 first-round pick missed 14 games in 2022 because of a biceps tear, and the patellar tendon tear — suffered shortly after the Chargers gave their blindside bastion a then-record extension — kept him off the field throughout 2025.

The Chargers did not place Slater on the active/PUP list to open training camp, and he was full go by Week 1. But this latest setback highlights the bind the Bolts could find themselves in thanks to the big-ticket contract. Suffering the patellar tendon injury days after signing a four-year, $114MM extension, Slater will reach this season’s midpoint having finished just three games on that contract.

Slater’s 2027 base salary ($26MM) is fully guaranteed — by virtue of the Northwestern alum being on Los Angeles’ roster on Day 3 of the ’26 league year — and a $10MM 2028 guarantee vests on Day 3 of the ’27 league year. How the two-time Pro Bowler performs coming off this surgery will be important for a Chargers team that continues to see injury issues interfere — particularly up front.

Right tackle Joe Alt, whom the Chargers slid to LT to replace Slater last season, is expected to miss Week 5 with a neck injury. Alt missed most of last season with a high ankle sprain, aggravating the injury upon return and eventually being shut down after a season-ending surgery. The Chargers looked to have one of the league’s best tackle tandems entering training camp last year. They now carry big-picture questions at these spots. With Justin Herbert mired in a career-worst stretch, he will now be in the familiar position of operating without his starting tackles.