3:23pm: Harris will be expected to suit up and play Friday, Harbaugh said (via NFL.com’s Omar Ruiz). This will run Harris’ regular-season games-played streak to 69 to open his career.
1:50pm: The Chargers having their preferred one-two backfield punch Friday firmly in play. Running back Najee Harris said (via Daniel Popper of The Athletic) that he is “ramping up” to the team’s regular-season opener on Friday in Brazil.
Harris injured his eye in a July fireworks mishap that sidelined him for virtually all of training camp. The veteran running back added that his vision has not been affected by the injury, which he described as “superficial,” the same word used by his agent when it originally happened.
Jim Harbaugh stopped short of guaranteeing Harris would be available in Week 1, but the second-year Chargers coach said (via ESPN.com’s Kris Rhim) he was cleared for contact Monday. He then went through a full practice Tuesday. Full practices usually point to players suiting up that week, but with Harris being cleared nearly two months after his injury, it would be understandable if the Bolts exercised caution here.
The Chargers gave Harris a one-year, $5.25MM deal in free agency but then used their first-round pick on Omarion Hampton. The latter move certainly affected Harris’ outlook in Los Angeles, and a player that had never missed a game with Pittsburgh then ran into this off-field injury. Harris did not resume running until mid-August, but swift progress has come since. He avoided the reserve/NFI list and represents a wild card for the Chargers’ Brazil tilt against the Chiefs.
The Bolts have not beaten the Chiefs since the 2021 season, and this is their “home” game against the perennial AFC West champions. If Harris were deemed unable to go, the Chargers would have Hassan Haskins — an ex-Harbaugh Michigan charge who joined the team after being a Titans cut — as Hampton’s backup. The 2022 fifth-rounder logged 34 carries for the Chargers last season; he has only taken 59 NFL handoffs.
With Hampton signed for four seasons (with the option of a fifth due to his first-round status), Harris looks like he will start an audition season soon. Putting this fireworks accident behind him will be critical to building a case for a better 2026 free agency accord. The increasingly run-focused Bolts will also have a four-time 1,000-yard rusher ready to complement a first-round pick soon, marking a positive update compared to where things stood not long ago.
Sam Robinson contributed to this post.
Najee Clearly Now
Superficial eye injury without vision being affected? Did he blow off his eyelid?