As the Los Angeles Chargers' season has unfolded thus far, one of the most interesting storylines to watch has been the way in which the team has balanced the workload of Najee Harris, whom they acquired in the offseason via free agency, and recent draft pick Omarion Hampton.
Yet, when Harris went down in the second quarter of the Chargers' Week 3 matchup against the Denver Broncos, the way in which the injury happened seems to indicate an Achilles injury.
If this is the case, Harris could be out for the season.
Najee Harris suffers an apparent Achilles injury against the Broncos
As the Chargers-Broncos game neared halftime, it appeared as though Harris remained the primary running back, taking more snaps and looking considerably more effective on inside runs than his partner Hampton.
Yet, on what looked like an apparent attempt at a play-action play, Harris went down, grabbing his calf, before Herbert could even get into his drop-back and fake the handoff. Herbert stepped over him and continued the play, but, based on the way that Harris grimaced in pain, it became immediately apparent that something was seriously wrong.
Video replay afterwards revealed what looked like a recoil in his calf: a tell-tale sign of an tear or rupture to the Achilles tendon.
Through four full seasons in the NFL, all with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Harris emerged as one of the most reliable running backs in the league. He reached 1,000 yards and played all 17 games in each of his first four seasons, reaching the Pro Bowl once.
Harris projected to be a major, major piece in Los Angeles's run game this season after returning from an eye injury he sustained the offseason, having achieved a 77.8% rushing success rate through the team's first two games and, despite the team's reluctance to lean on their run game thus far, taking on a smaller, but still significant, workload.
He also projected to take on a role as a passing-down back for the Chargers, having shown a propensity throughout his career to be able to run routes effectively out of the backfield.
Now, however, it appears as though the rookie Hampton, who has already taken on the lion's share of the workload, will need to seriously step up within what was projected to be a run-heavy offense. It remains to be seen whether fourth-year back Hassan Haskins will be elevated into a larger role or if the team will need to find a stop-gap player on the market.