The LA Chargers have to survive without Rashawn Slater in 2025 after the star left tackle suffered a torn patellar tendon during training camp. 2024 first-round pick Joe Alt is sliding over to left tackle with Trey Pipkins getting the promotion to starting right tackle.
Jim Harbaugh acknowledged on Friday that Pipkins sliding into a starting role created a need for more depth on the offensive line. The only depth piece on the roster with NFL experience at tackle was Jamaree Salyer, who is the team's swing guard.
The Chargers remedied this problem on Saturday by signing 29-year-old David Sharpe to a one-year contract. Sharpe has connections to the coaching staff, the front office, fellow players on the roster, and the AFC West.
Chargers sign David Sharpe after Rashawn Slater injury
The Las Vegas Raiders drafted Sharpe in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL Draft but he never quite panned out for the team. Sharpe lasted just one season as he was waived as part of the team's roster cuts in 2020. He wound up returning to the Raiders after a brief stint on the Houston Texans' practice squad.
The Raiders then traded Sharpe and a seventh-round pick to the Washington Commanders for a sixth-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Sharpe started two games for Washington in 2020 and was cut, once again, as part of roster cuts before the 2021 regular season.
That is when Sharpe developed his connection to the Chargers. Sharpe spent the 2021 and 2022 seasons on the Baltimore Ravens' practice squad. Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz was in Baltimore at the time, as was offensive coordinator Greg Roman.
Sharpe then bounced to another team, spending the 2023 season with the Carolina Panthers. There, he reunited with veteran offensive lineman Bradley Bozeman, who will be the Chargers' starting center in 2025.
After one year with the Panthers, Sharpe spent time with both the Texans and New York Jets practice squads in 2024, although he did not play in an NFL game.
Sharpe shouldn't play a game with the LA Chargers in 2025 and if he does it is probably a bad sign. Heck, the veteran lineman may suffer the same fate as he has in years past and may simply be an extra body for the preseason. He really would have to wow Jim Harbaugh to earn a roster spot with this little turnaround time.
Just because the Chargers signed Sharpe does not mean they are done adding. Hortiz will explore every single avenue available to find quality depth that the coaching staff can believe in.