Chargers officially end Tyler Biadasz's season as Jake Slaughter contingency kicks in

Fans of the Los Angeles Chargers have had a few days now to acclimate themselves to the news of the injury to starting center Tyler Biadasz.

After Biadasz went down with an apparent knee injury in joint practice last week against the San Francisco 49ers, though, there was still a sliver of hope. Although he was carted off the field, there was a chance, albeit a minor one, that he had simply suffered a sprain or non season-ending damage to either his MCL or his ACL.

Those hopes were quickly dashed when Dan Graziano at NFL Network reported the next morning that Biadasz's injury was expected to be long-term, and Jim Harbaugh later confirmed that things were "not promising" in regards to Biadasz's availability.

But everyone's worst fears were confirmed on Sunday when Los Angeles placed Biadasz on the season-ending injured reserve, officially leaving Jake Slaughter as the team's starting center for 2026.

There's still reason to be hopeful about this offensive line—but the injury to Biadasz is obviously a major blow.

Tyler Biadasz's season is officially over— what's next for the Chargers?

Biadasz was meant to represent a major upgrade over Bradley Bozeman, who was one of the worst centers in football last season before he chose to retire at the end of the campaign. The sub-par play of Mekhi Becton and Zion Johnson on either side of him certainly didn't help, but Bozeman routinely. struggled to stop any sort of pressure up the middle—especially if rushers were lined up in a 1-tech as opposed to a traditional nose tackle role.

Biadasz, meanwhile, is likely a top 12-15 center in the NFL. He allowed just 21 pressures and three sacks on 572 pass-blocking snaps last season with the Washington Commanders, per Pro Football Focus, and the fact that the Chargers got him on a three-year, $30 million deal prior to the start of free agency was one of the major gifts of this offseason.

The Chargers, thankfully, have a contingency plan for Biadasz. Slaughter was one of the best centers in all of college last season. Although he still has some development to undertake in regards to his anchor and agility in the middle of the offensive line, he's shown enough flashes during training camp and the preseason to be confident in his ability to take over starting duties.

The move seriously depletes Los Angeles' depth, though. It leaves Kayode Awosika and Branson Taylor, neither of whom are particularly inspiring pieces, competing for the starting left guard spot. It also leaves them without a dedicated backup center unless UDFA Jacob Spomer makes the 53-man roster.

This was expected all along, but the official end of Biadasz's season, needless to say, is a definite disappointment for this Chargers team.

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