The Los Angeles Chargers bounced back from a loss to the Indianapolis Colts, blowing out the Minnesota Vikings in Week 8’s Thursday Night Football showdown. Los Angeles impressed in the strong showing. But the celebration was tempered by injury concerns as Derwin James was ruled out with an ankle sprain.
James underwent an MRI on his ankle after exiting the Vikings game in the first quarter. The Chargers hoped their mini-bye coming out of the Thursday night game would provide enough time for the star safety to recover.
Fortunately for Jim Harbaugh and company, James returned to practice ahead of Week 9’s matchup against the Tennessee Titans. And the eighth-year veteran says his ankle is “healed up” and he’s feeling “fresh” with the additional rest, per The Athletic’s Daniel Popper.
Derwin James is good-to-go after Week 8 injury scare
James acknowledged being “a little scared at first,” according to Popper. The four-time Pro Bowler was unable to stand or put weight on his ankle initially. But he’s expected to be good-to-go for Week 9, as the 5-3 Chargers face the 1-7 Titans.
The 29-year-old defensive back has been durable for Los Angeles. Over the last four and a half seasons, James has only missed seven games. And he played 100 percent of defensive snaps for the Chargers in the first seven games of 2025, prior to his Week 8 injury.
James’ presence has helped lead Los Angeles to the seventh-ranked overall defense through eight weeks this season. And his head coach is a big fan. Harbaugh called James the best safety “in the history of the National Football League.”
Harbaugh will need James to continue playing at a high level as injuries to the secondary mount. The Chargers lost Tarheeb Still for 2-4 weeks. The second-year cornerback also exited Week 8 early. But unlike James, Still will miss time after suffering a MCL sprain.
