Time to work: Chargers first team to open training camp

Miami Herald

2 days ago

The Los Angeles Chargers will be the first NFL team to kick off training camp on Thursday, after rookies and select players reported last Saturday and veterans arrived on Wednesday.
The Chargers and the Detroit Lions -- with rookies reporting on Thursday and veterans on duty starting Saturday -- will be the first two teams with their entire squads on site. The Chargers, who hold camp in El Segundo, Calif., and the Lions (Allen Park, Mich.) open the preseason with the NFL/Hall of Fame Game on July 31 in Canton, Ohio.
Chargers starting linebacker Daiyan Henley, who had offseason shoulder surgery, said on Wednesday that he expects to be a full participant at training camp. Henley, 25, tore his labrum early in the 2024 campaign and still started all 17 games as well as the lone playoff game. He totaled 147 tackles, one interception, one sack and eight passes defended during the regular season.
Running back Najee Harris likely will begin camp on the active/non-football injury list as he is treated for what his agent called a 'superficial eye injury' from a Fourth of July fireworks incident, Chargers general manager Joe Horitz said Wednesday.
Harris was expected to report on Wednesday to the team's facility in El Segundo after remaining in the Bay Area following the incident in Antioch, Calif., and treatment at Stanford hospital, Horitz said. Harris' agent, Doug Hendrickson, said following the mishap that the running back is expected to be ready for the 2025 season.
The 27-year-old signed a one-year deal, $5.25 million deal with the Chargers in the offseason that could be worth up to an additional $4 million if he meets all incentives for rushing yardage. Harris and first-round draft pick Omarion Hampton (North Carolina) are expected to be the team's main ball carriers.
Harris topped 1,000 rushing yards in all four of his seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers and has 4,312 yards and 28 rushing touchdowns in 68 NFL games (all starts). The Steelers selected him 24th overall in the 2021 NFL Draft, and Harris made the Pro Bowl and the NFL All-Rookie team that season. He became a free agent after the 2024 season.
The 2025 regular season starts on Thursday, Sept. 4 with the Dallas Cowboys against the Philadelphia Eagles. The Cowboys will have their full squad on site on Monday, while the defending Super Bowl champions will do the same on Tuesday.
The Kansas City Chiefs, who face the Chargers in the league's second regular-season game in Brazil on Sept. 5, will have their full squad on site on Monday. There will be 30 clubs fully reported by Tuesday, while the Atlanta Falcons and Steelers are having players report on July 23.
This year's training camps will feature 29 clubs scheduling joint practices with other teams, and 26 clubs (81.3 percent) will hold the majority of camp at their practice facility, home stadium or at a site within 10 miles of team headquarters. By comparison, 10 of the 31 teams in 2000 chose to stay home.
Six clubs are holding camps away from their facilities: Buffalo Bills (Rochester, N.Y.), Cowboys (Oxnard, Calif.), Indianapolis Colts (Westfield, Ind.), Chiefs (St. Joseph, Mo.), Rams (Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles) and Steelers (Latrobe, Pa.).
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