Free agent running back Austin Ekeler is medically cleared for all football activities, Aaron Wilson of KPRC reports.
Ekeler, who turns 31 next week, plans to play in 2026.
The nine-year veteran tore his Achilles in Week 2 last season. He had 19 touches for 81 yards in his second season in Washington after seven seasons with the Chargers.
Ekeler appeared in 12 games for Washington in 2024, rushing for 367 yards and four touchdowns on 77 carries, catching 35 passes for 366 yards and averaging 31.3 yards on 19 kickoff returns.
In his career, Ekeler has 1,561 touches for 9,053 yards and 73 touchdowns.
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Now that the NFL draft has come and gone, there’s one key date left on the league’s offseason schedule. Even if we don’t know what that date will be.
The schedule release is coming. In May. When in May, we don’t know.
Last year, the full regular-season schedule was released on Wednesday, May 14. In the preceding days, a handful of games were announced by the various broadcast partners.
That makes the week of May 11 the most likely target for the 2026 schedule release, as to the entire slate of 272 regular-season games.
Like every year, the “who” and the “where” of every game became known the moment the prior regular season ended. The formula is tied to division membership (six games), the AFC-NFC full-division rotation (as to eight games), and final finish in each team’s given division (three games). But the “when” remains a mystery, for all but two games.
To date, the league has announced that the Rams will “host” the 49ers in Melbourne on Thursday, September 10 (Friday, September 11 at the site of the game) and that the Cowboys will “host” the Ravens in Brazil on Sunday, September 27. As to the other 270 games, nothing has been announced.
The act of adding the “where” to the “who” and the “when” will be a major sports story, overshadowing the other major sports that are, you know, playing games. It’s another tangible example of the extent to which the NFL stands out in the American sports landscape.
We’ve suggested in the past that the league could, and perhaps should, make it a multi-day exercise, with the prime-time games unveiled on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of schedule-release week and the rest of the games announced on Thursday. Why not commandeer the full week, instead of taking over only one day?
The experience has now been supplemented by a competition among the teams to come up with the best and most creative schedule-release videos. Some teams do it better than others, with the Chargers typically having the most edgy and humorous offering. As a result, some teams have arguably pushed the limits, to the point where it makes sense for the league office to sign off on any videos that could become problematic once they debut.
That could be a particularly good idea this year, for any team that has the Patriots on the schedule. Especially the Chargers, who are indeed slated to host New England in 2026.
The Chargers have made a call on the fifth-year option on Quentin Johnston’s contract. The team announced Tuesday that it will exercise it.
It fully guarantees the wide receiver $18 million for 2027.
The Chargers made Johnston a first-round pick in 2023. He led the team in touchdowns the past two seasons and posted a career-high 735 receiving yards in 14 games last season.
Johnston has 144 catches for 1,877 yards and 18 touchdowns since entering the league.
The Chargers have a deep wide receivers room with Ladd McConkey, Johnston, Tre’ Harris and KeAndre Lambert-Smith.
The Chargers paid Teair Tart a total of $6.225 million the past two seasons. They signed him to a three-year, $30 million deal in February, with $20 million guaranteed.
The defensive lineman insists the money won’t change him.
“No, it actually builds on it. Same me,” Tart said Monday, via Eric Smith of the team website. “I always got something to prove. I know I play with a chip on my shoulder, always got something to prove, always want to find ways to get better each and every season.
“I got a new contract, but it don’t change the goals. It don’t change the ambition I got for myself and this team.”
Tart, 29, has played for the Titans and Texans and spent the 2024 offseason and part of that training camp with the Dolphins. The Chargers signed Tart following his release from the Dolphins.
Now, he’s under contract for three more years.
“I think it was great. I love being here. The staff knows that. Everybody in the building knows that,” Tart said. “I’m extremely appreciative. I feel like over the years, it’s been a long journey. I’ve been busting my ass day-in and day-out, always trying to prove my worth to the staff, to my teammates, trying to prove myself each and every day. It’s much appreciated, and honestly I thank God. I feel blessed.”
Tart has totaled 61 tackles, one sack, one interception and six quarterback hits in his two seasons in Los Angeles.
The Chargers have added 18 undrafted rookie free agents to their roster, including one who will be reunited with defensive coordinator Chris O’Leary.
O’Leary was hired after running the defense at Western Michigan last season and edge rusher Nadame Tucker thrived in that system. Tucker had 14.5 sacks for the Broncos, which tied No. 2 overall pick David Bailey for the most in the nation.
Tucker’s big season came after he played sparingly during three seasons at Houston and NFL teams obviously weren’t blown away by his numbers in the MAC, but he’ll get a chance to show that he has something to offer the Chargers.
The Chargers also signed Utah State safety Noah Avinger, Utah linebacker Lander Barton, Kansas State tight end Jerand Bradley, Colorado wide receiver Sincere Brown, Virginia defensive lineman Jahmeer Carter, Memphis running back Gregory Desrosiers, Syracuse safety Devin Grant, LSU defensive lineman Jacobian Guillory, San Diego State linebacker Niles King, Penn State wide receiver Devonte Ross, Georgia Tech cornerback Rodney Shelley, Toledo cornerback Avery Smith, Fresno State center Jacob Spomer, Wyoming tight end Evan Svoboda, SMU defensive lineman Terry Webb, Florida State cornerback Jeremiah Wilson, and Oregon tackle Isaiah World.
There’s now another set of brothers in the NFL.
The Saints selected receiver Bryce Lance — quarterback Trey Lance’s younger brother — with the No. 136 overall pick in the fourth round of the 2026 draft.
Bryce Lance also played his college ball at North Dakota State, winning a pair of FCS national championships.
He was a two-year starter at NDSU, garnering first-team All-MVFC recognition in 2024 and 2025. He recorded 75 receptions for 1,071 yards with 17 touchdowns in 2024 and 51 catches for 1,079 yards with eight TDs in 2025.
Now he will be in the pros with his brother, Trey, who is currently the Chargers’ backup QB.
The Chargers added some juice to the edges of their defense in the first round on Thursday night.
They made Ahkeem Mesidor the 22nd overall pick. Mesidor’s Miami teammate Rueben Bain was the No. 15 pick to Tampa, so both Hurricane edge rushers are now off the board.
Offensive tackle Francis Mauigoa was selected 10th by the Giants, so three Miami players have now gone in the first round.
Mesidor had 12.5 sacks for Miami last season and spent six years in college overall, so he’s older than many of the other players being picked on Thursday night. That could limit his growth potential, but it could also make him likelier to contribute right off the bat as a complement to Khalil Mack and Tuli Tuipulotu in Los Angeles.
The World Cup is coming soon. And it’s quickly becoming a pain in the posterior for the 13 teams playing in stadiums that will be commandeered for intercontinental soccer.
Ben Fischer of Sports Business Journal recently reviewed some of the practical impacts of FIFA bigfooting the various venues where fútbol will be played. This week, for example, the Jets and Giants will move their annual draft parties away from MetLife Stadium to Manhattan.
In all, 13 teams are impacted by the World Cup: the Cowboys, Jets, Giants, Falcons, Chiefs, Texans, 49ers, Chargers, Rams, Eagles, Seahawks, Patriots, and Dolphins.
For the teams that have employees at the stadiums hosting World Cup games, many will be moved. Those who are staying put will be subject to FIFA credentialing to get into their workplaces. And the Giants will start training camp in West Virginia, since MetLife Stadium will be hosting the final match on July 19 on a grass field that will need to be removed and replaced with one of the worst artificial surfaces in the entire league.
That last part still has to be the most galling for NFL players. Owners with stadiums that don’t have grass have bent over backwards to do whatever had to be done to placate FIFA. Their regular employees, however, will still be stuck with a lesser (and far cheaper) playing surface.
The various sacrifices involuntarily made by the players and other team employees should prompt FIFA to give them all a phony, made-up award. Especially since FIFA has already done that, for far less.
Chargers offensive tackles Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt are working their way back from injuries that prematurely ended their season in 2025. General Manager Joe Hortiz offered an encouraging update on Thursday.
“I think they’re ahead of schedule,” Hortiz said, via Eric Smith of the team website. “Both are tracking well, and [I’m] looking forward to seeing them out there.”
The Chargers’ offseason program begins Monday and Hortiz said both could participate, though the team will be deliberate in their return to football activities.
“Yeah, I think they’ll be involved in some capacity,” Hortiz said. “Coming back from injuries, you don’t rush anything, there’s no need to rush it. Let them come back, be healthy, the target is for the start of training camp. But I think they’ll be out there getting some work.”
Alt earned Pro Bowl honors despite playing in only six games due to an ankle injury that ended his second season.
Slater ruptured a patellar tendon in training camp.
“My expectations, where [Slater] is, where he’s been, where he was in the fall, it’s a different recovery time. No rush, but everything indicator is he’s ahead of schedule and doing really well,” Hortiz said. “We’re not going to rush it. We’re going to take our time. There’s a timeline to recover from that. Go through the steps, but he looks great.
“I look out the window, and he’s out there working, moving around. I feel good about it.”
A rash of injuries in the offensive line in 2025 could lead the Chargers to add another offensive tackle in the draft.
“Now, if last year proved anything it’s that you can never have too many tackles, just like the year before proved you can’t have too many corners. You can never have too many of anything,” Hortiz said. “It doesn’t change our approach. If there’s a tackle in the draft that we like and he’s sitting there when we’re picking, and he’s the top guy, we’ll take him.”
The Chargers still are deciding on the fifth-year option for Quentin Johnston, but General Manager Joe Hortiz insists the wide receiver will be part of the team in 2026.
During his pre-draft news conference on Thursday, Hortiz attempted to squash trade rumors involving Johnston.
“There’s a lot of rumors out there on Twitter,” Hortiz said, via Kris Rhim of ESPN, “and I can tell you this: I have made zero calls about Quentin, and I’ve had zero calls regarding Quentin.”
The Chargers made Johnston a first-round pick in 2023, and his penchant for drops followed him to the NFL. However, he led the team in touchdowns the past two seasons and posted a career-high 735 receiving yards in 14 games last season.
The Chargers have a deep wide receivers room with Ladd McConkey, Tre’ Harris and KeAndre Lambert-Smith, but Hortiz said the team has a place for Johnston.
“We’re really excited about the wide receiver room,” Hortiz said. "[Offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel] has talked about it. Just development all those guys have made. All starting with [Johnston]. Watching him get better year after year after year.”
The Chargers have until May 1 to pick up Johnston’s fifth-year option, which is set to be worth $18.1 million, fully guaranteed, for 2027.
