NFL teams are approaching next Tuesday’s deadline to cut down to 53 players, and for the Los Angeles Chargers, that decision could involve a big name. Running back Najee Harris, signed this offseason to bring stability to the backfield, remains on the non-football injury (NFI) list after suffering a superficial eye injury during a July 4 fireworks mishap.
If Harris stays on NFI through roster cuts, he’ll be sidelined for at least the first four games of the 2025 season. That reality seems more likely by the day, though head coach Jim Harbaugh isn’t about to confirm anything.
“When Najee is ready to play, Najee will be ready to play,” Harbaugh said, via The Athletic’s Daniel Popper. “Right now, to take it past today would be going over the legal limit. That would take you over the legal limit of what-ifs. You just take it one day at a time.”
The remark was vintage Harbaugh—equal parts evasive and wry, turning a straightforward injury update into a philosophical lesson about patience.
Chargers Remain Non-Commital About Najee Harris Injury Status
Do You Have Big Kicker Energy?
Harbaugh expanded slightly when pressed, revealing that Harris has been doing side work and gradually increasing activity.
“I see Najee every day, I talk to Najee every day [and ask], ‘How you feeling?’ He says, ‘Better.’ My question is, ‘Better than yesterday?’ He said, ‘Yes,’ each day that I’ve asked him that,” Harbaugh explained. “That is real encouraging. It just gives you hope that tomorrow will be better than today. Improvement leads to success theory at work, so simple that it just might work.”
For now, though, improvement might not equal availability. Harris has not participated in a full practice during camp, and Popper projected him to begin the season on NFI:
“Harris has shown progress this week, going through football drills off to the side of practice. But I have not seen nearly enough progress at this point to think he will be ready for Week 1. That could change. For now, I am predicting that he starts the season on NFI.”
If that holds, it will be a disappointing start to Harris’ tenure in Los Angeles. The Chargers envisioned him as a steady veteran presence to pair with rookie first-rounder Omarion Hampton, allowing the young back to ease into the workload. Instead, Hampton is set to be the featured option right away, with Hassan Haskins, Kimani Vidal, and undrafted rookie Raheim Sanders filling out the rotation.
With the season opener in Brazil just two weeks away, Harbaugh isn’t letting anyone see past the day-to-day. His message was clear, even through the smirk: don’t ask for a timeline, because you won’t get one.
“When Najee’s ready,” Harbaugh said again, “Najee’s ready.”
Subscribe to LAFB Network’s Los Angeles Chargers YouTube Channel