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Najee Harris out for the season with Achilles tear

Originally posted on The Predictors | By William Petersen | Last updated Sep 22, 2025 6:44 PM ET

Week 3 was the week of season ending injuries (so far) as another high profile player in LA Chargers running back Najee Harris sustained a non-contact Achilles tear in the Chargers 23-20 win over the Denver Broncos Sunday afternoon. Harris sustained the injury on a play-action play in the second quarter, immediately grabbing his left calf after falling to the turf. The Chargers initially ruled him as questionable to return with what they believed was an ankle injury but later in the game ruled him as unable to return. While the Chargers lost their lead back, rookie running back Omarion Hampton had a career game, finishing with 129 total scrimmage yards and his first career touchdown. With Harris going down Hampton stepped up in a major way with his 63 total snaps, clearly making the most of them in a huge win against a division rival.

Here is Chargers RB Najee Harris suffering an Achilles injury before he was carted off: pic.twitter.com/0rV5YQYU1K
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 21, 2025

Now that Harris’ 2025 campaign is over, Hampton will need to continue his production from Sunday afternoon if the Chargers are going to maintain their offensive production and their undefeated record. The Chargers first three wins have come by beating each team in their division and now face a 0-3 Giants squad in Metlife that could find the Chargers at 4-0 for the first time since 2002.

This will be the first time in Najee Harris’ career that he will miss a game and Hampton will need to fill a role that is crucial to a Jim Harbaugh offense that has relied heavily on establishing the run early and often. Before Harris came over to the Chargers this past offseason in free agency, Harris rushed for 1,000 yards in each of his first four seasons with the Steelers. The physical style of running that Harris brought to the Chargers backfield could be replicated with Hampton who ran for 3,565 yards and 36 touchdowns in his time at North Carolina from 2022 to 2024.

This article first appeared on The Predictors and was syndicated with permission.

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