Pro Bowl tackle Rashawn Slater was a surprise inactive for the LA Chargers in Week 18's win over the Las Vegas Raiders. Slater felt some discomfort in his knee prior to the game and the Chargers opted against playing Slater with a spot in the NFL Playoffs already locked in.
Chargers fans were hopeful that the team was simply being cautious with the star tackle to prevent the discomfort from snowballing into something bigger right ahead of the NFL Playoffs. However, the situation may end up being bigger than that.
Jim Harbaugh was asked about Slater after the win and the lack of details provided caused fans to panic about the tackle's availability for the NFL Playoffs.
Chargers HC Jim Harbaugh on Rashawn Slater's knee: "During stretch he felt something and wasn't gonna play. Doctors said he wasn't gonna play."
— Alex Insdorf (@alexinsdorf99) January 6, 2025
Rashawn Slater will be getting an MRI "as soon as he can."
Jim Harbaugh creates more questions than answers about Rashawn Slater after Chargers' win
This is par for the course when it comes to Harbaugh, who has kept injury-related news close to the vest all season. Harbaugh and the Chargers will relay concrete injury updates when necessary and will not speculate about the status of a player.
Granted, Harbaugh was not going to have concrete answers about Slater directly after the game but his comments still didn't bring any levity to the situation. Confirming that doctors held Slater out, and that he will need an MRI to assess the damage, is certainly a concerning sign.
Thankfully, Slater does not have a history of knee injuries so this is not a case of it being a lingering issue that may be a sign of something bigger. However, the timing is obviously less than ideal considering the start of the playoffs are around the corner.
If Slater cannot go then rookie Joe Alt will play left tackle with right tackle likely going to Foster Sarell. Trey Pipkins started at right tackle in Week 18 but left early with an injury. Jamaree Salyer would start at right guard either way if Slater is out.
The Chargers are not dealing with any other significant injuries to star players on the roster. Justin Herbert and co. are mostly healthy on offense while the defensive stars are heading into round one with a clean bill of health.
The one drawback of playing the Houston Texans in round one, though, is that the game might be destined to be on Saturday instead of Sunday. The NFL loves scheduling the Texans in the Saturday slot. If the league repeats itself, Slater will have one less day to recover from the injury.