As the Los Angeles Chargers opened training camp ahead of their Hall of Fame Game matchup with the Detroit Lions, one rookie was conspicuously absent: Tre Harris, the team’s second-round pick and a key part of their retooled receiver corps.
Harris, selected 55th overall out of Ole Miss, became the first rookie leaguewide to officially hold out as part of an emerging second-round contract standoff centered around guaranteed money. The holdout comes in the wake of precedent-shifting deals for picks No. 33 (Carson Schwesinger) and No. 34 (Jayden Higgins), both of whom received fully guaranteed four-year contracts—a first for players taken outside the first round.
With Harris and 29 other second-rounders still unsigned, all eyes are on who will blink next.
Tre Harris Holdout Highlights Contract Standoff Days Ahead Of Chargers Training Camp
“I wish I could put a crystal ball on it,” Chargers GM Joe Hortiz told the LA Times‘ Thuc Nhi Nguyen. “I hope it’s done soon… Practice is vital for everyone. There’s a reason we come to camp. You want to hit the ground running Week 1.”
Hortiz didn’t offer details on where negotiations stand but suggested once another deal gets signed, the “layers” for the rest will fall into place.
The bigger question, as Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio pointed out, is why second-round picks waited until now to make their stand. Nearly all of them participated in offseason workouts without contracts—arguably forfeiting valuable leverage.
Harris, a Second-Team All-American at Ole Miss, brings size (6’2″, 205 lbs), vertical explosiveness, and elite college production. In just 20 games, he racked up 2,015 yards and 15 touchdowns. For a Chargers offense that struggled to stretch the field, Harris projects as a much-needed weapon for Justin Herbert.
But every day he misses slows that integration. For now, the stalemate continues—with Harris on the front lines of a much larger contract battle reshaping the second round’s future.
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