Chargers' Black Monday continues with ominous injury update on rookie RB Omarion Hampton

The day after they escaped Tennessee with a victory and the day before the trade deadline looms to make a deal to bolster their roster, the Los Angeles Chargers received a sandwich double-stacked with disastrous news.

The first layer is the season-ending ankle injury to star left tackle Joe Alt. It was followed Monday afternoon by an update almost as depressing: rookie running back and team leading rusher Omarion Hampton won't return until at least after the team's Week 12 Bye. That means he will, at the earliest, be back on the field Nov. 30 against the Las Vegas Raiders.

The Chargers are 6-3 with a quarterback in Justin Herbert playing at an MVP level and only one game out of first place in the AFC West, but the day's double-dose of bad news has Bolts fans reeling.

MORE: Chargers desperately need to make deadline trade to protect MVP-level QB Justin Herbert

Alt, who recently missed three games with an injury to the same ankle, suffered another injury to the same ankle early in the game against the Titans. He was carted off the field, will be placed on season-ending Injured Reserve and, at some point, undergo surgery.

Jim Harbaugh said he doesn’t think the Chargers will open the window for running back Omarion Hampton to return from IR until after the Week 12 bye.
— Kris Rhim (@krisrhim1) November 3, 2025

With Pro Bowl tackle already done for the year after a knee injury in training camp, this leaves the Chargers without their two starting protectors for Herbert. They planned on having the NFL's best pair of tackles, but injuries had other plans.

Austin Deculus struggled in Alt's absence, swing tackle Trey Pipkins has also battled injuries and guard Mekhi Becton has been in and out of the lineup.

Omarion Hampton Injury News Motivating Chargers to Trade For RB?

Hampton, who got an increased workload after the season-ending Achilles injury to Najee Harris early in the season, was have a Rookie-of-the-Year performance before a seemingly benign ankle injury in the loss to the Washington Commanders in Week 5. He walked off the field under his own power and was diagnosed with a sprained ankle, but hasn't been seen since. That was four weeks ago, and at best he'll miss seven games.

MORE: Chargers rebound from ugly start to beat Titans: Quick analysis and takeaways

In his absence, Kimani Vidal has stepped up. But Herbert has been the team's leading rusher in three of the five games Hampton has missed.

Though they don't have many assets in the form of salary cap room or extra draft picks, the further Hampton delay will resume cries from fans to make a trade for someone such as Jets' veteran Breece Hall before Tuesday's 1 p.m. deadline.

Omarion Hampton | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

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