It sounds like Junior Colson will soon resume his rookie season. The Chargers linebacker is expected to return to practice this week, coach Jim Harbaugh told reporters (including Daniel Popper of The Athletic).
[RELATED: Chargers Place Junior Colson On IR]
Colson suffered an ankle injury in Week 9 that’s sidelined him for the past four weeks. Based on Harbaugh’s comments today, there’s a chance the player only requires a minimum stay on injured reserve. The Chargers will have 21 days to activate the rookie to the active roster.
A former standout at Michigan, the linebacker was selected in the third round of this past year’s draft. Thanks to an unrelated hamstring injury that knocked him out for Week 3 and Week 4, Colson has only made six appearances this season. In three of those games, he exceeded a 50-percent snap count, and he collected 11 of his 14 tackles during that stretch.
Colson could be in line for some playing time during the stretch run of the season. Daiyan Henley will continue to lead the depth chart, but the rookie should compete with Denzel Perryman (who is nursing his own groin injury) for leftover snaps. Colson’s return could also knock Troy Dye to mostly a special teams role.