Chargers safety Derwin James suspended 1 game for violating NFL safety rules with helmet tackle

Los Angeles Chargers safety Derwin James has been suspended for one game without pay for repeatedly violating player safety rules, the league announced Monday night.

The suspension came after James drilled Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth in the head with his helmet while trying to make a tackle during their 20-10 loss to Pittsburgh on Sunday. That violation, the league said, is one of many that James has made recently.

James was seen trying to tackle Freiermuth during the third quarter, but he lowered his helmet and made direct helmet-to-helmet contact with Freiermuth to bring him down. He was hit with a penalty.

Here’s the hit that earned #Chargers S Derwin James a one-game suspension for repeat violations of the NFL’s safety rules.

“The video of the play shows that you lowered your head and made forcible contact. … Your continued disregard for NFL playing rules will not be tolerated.” pic.twitter.com/2KUxc25zrm

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) September 23, 2024

James, the NFL said, had an “unobstructed path” to tackle Freiermuth, and that his illegal contact “could have been avoided.”

“Your continued disregard for NFL playing rules will not be tolerated,” NFL executive Jon Runyan wrote to James in his suspension letter, via the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. “Substantial penalties are warranted when players violate the rules intended to protect player safety on a repeated basis, particularly when the violations carry with them a significant risk of injury to an opposing player.”

James had eight total tackles and a sack in the 20-10 loss. The 28-year-old is in his seventh season in the league. He had a career-high 125 tackles and an interception last season. James has been penalized twice so far this season, the first of which came earlier against the Steelers when he was hit with a facemask penalty. He had seven penalties last season, four of which were for unnecessary roughness.

James is expected to appeal the suspension. If it stands, he will miss their game on Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Chargers enter that contest with a 2-1 record after Sunday’s loss in Pittsburgh. They opened the season with wins against both the Las Vegas Raiders and Carolina Panthers, but quarterback Justin Herbert left Sunday’s game with an ankle injury. His status for their game against the Chiefs is still unknown.

The Chiefs, on the other hand, are a perfect 3-0 after they snuck out another win Sunday night against the Atlanta Falcons.