Heading into Week 4, the Los Angeles Chargers find themselves up against perhaps the best team in all of football in the Kansas City Chiefs. And unfortunately for Chargers fans, the team will certainly not be going into the tough test at full strength.
The injury to star quarterback Justin Herbert has been well-documented. His departure midway through their Week 3 matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers played a role in the Steelers ultimately winning the game.
But it turns out, Herbert’s injury is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the Chargers injury concerns heading into the game.
On Friday, the Chargers organization shared their injury report, which listed both Pro Bowl offensive tackle Rashawn Slater and star edge rusher Joey Bosa as out. On top of that, Herbert was listed as questionable along with rookie right tackle Joe Alt.
#KCvsLAC game status
QUESTIONABLE — Justin Herbert, Kristian Fulton, Ja’sir Taylor, Joe Alt, Derius Davis, Deane Leonard
OUT — Joey Bosa, Rashawn Slater, Junior Colson
— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) September 27, 2024
It will be interesting to see whether Slater and Alt’s availability could potentially play into the Chargers looming decision to play or sit Justin Herbert.
Sending someone like Herbert, who is still dealing with ankle injury, out to play without two of the team’s best offensive tackles could certainly be seen as a risky move.
But on the other hand, facing off against the Chiefs without someone like Herbert seems like a recipe for disaster.
Only time will tell whether Herbert or Alt, or potentially neither end up suiting up for Sunday’s game. But clearly, the mounting number of injuries will lead to the Chargers being forced to make some very difficult decisions.