Chargers running back Najee Harris completed another practice and will play when Los Angeles opens the season in Brazil on Friday night.
Head coach Jim Harbaugh plans to use Harris and first-round pick Omarion Hampton in tandem, but wouldn’t get into a pecking order or snap count plans two days before the Week 1 international game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
“He says he’s ready, and he looks ready to go,” Harbaugh said. “Those are really hard to predict, play counts and things of that nature. Get in there, play football and have at it. That’s kind of the mindset. Not kind of, that is the mindset.”
Harris will wear a visor to protect what he described as a “superficial” eye injury. Harris was hurt in a fireworks mishap on July 4 and only last week was activated from the Non-Football Injury (NFI) List to be added to the 53-man roster.
Harris said in August he would focus on getting back into football shape and let the timeshare in the backfield play out.
“I am feeling good, though, and we’ll just see where it leads,” he said.
Harris topped 1,000 rushing yards in all four of his seasons with the 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 after that season.
Hampton was the 22nd pick in the 2025 draft in April after two All-American seasons at North Carolina. He produced 38.5 percent of North Carolina’s total offense — 2,033 yards from scrimmage — in 2024, and finished his college career with 36 rushing touchdowns.
