Eric D. Williams 9y

Eight players miss practice for Chargers

SAN DIEGO – If the San Diego Chargers are getting healthier, quarterback Philip Rivers didn’t seem to notice on Wednesday.

“I don’t know if you could say today looked that way on the practice field,” joked Rivers. “I almost thought, ‘Where is everybody?’”

Even after a long weekend to recuperate from nagging injuries, eight Chargers players still missed practice.

Brandon Flowers (concussion), Ryan Mathews (knee), Manti Te'o (foot), Jeremiah Attaochu (hamstring), Dwight Freeney (knee), Rich Ohrnberger (back), Jason Verrett (shoulder) and Jahleel Addae (concussion) did not practice.

However, Flowers, Mathews, Attaochu and Addae did some work on the side. Freeney and Ohrnberger are expected to play against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.

After missing three games with a concussion, running back Donald Brown finally cleared the NFL concussion protocol and was a full participant in practice on Wednesday, along with cornerback Steve Williams (groin). Linebacker Reggie Walker (ankle) was a limited participant.

“It felt good to get back out there, get back into a routine and get back into the swing of things,” Brown said. “You put so much time and effort into the offseason to play in games. And to sit out and watch your team compete while you have to sit there and not do anything, it’s tough. But I’m excited about the opportunity this coming week to play Miami. It’s a good test, and it will be a challenge.”

The addition of Brown gives San Diego more depth at running back, with Branden Oliver taking the lion’s share of the reps in the backfield the last three games.

Chargers head coach Mike McCoy said even with eight players missing practice on Wednesday, his team is inching closer to being fully healthy.

“We’ve got a lot of guys that are extremely close to coming back,” McCoy said. “You see some of those guys running around today on their own doing things. But we’ve got one thing on our mind – finding a way to get to 6-3. That’s all that is on our mind for the rest of the week.”

The Chargers also released cornerback Aaron Hester from the practice squad and signed cornerback Kendall James from Maine in his place.

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