nfl

Chargers CB J.C. Jackson ready to play against Miami

The Chargers cornerback said he feels ready to play on Sunday against Miami.

COSTA MESA, Calif. — J.C. Jackson has said since June that if he was mentally and physically ready come the end of training, he would play week one against Miami.

He wasn’t on the team’s injury report Wednesday after practice.

“I’m all in,” Jackson said. “I’m getting ready for week one.”

It is unknown yet what his work load will be on Sunday. The team has been careful with him all offseason up until this point.

“To be determined,” head coach Brandon Staley said. “He has practiced we’ll see how it goes in the game.”

What will be the determining factor?

“Just seeing him through a game,” Staley said.

He hasn’t played in a game since week seven of last season when he ruptured his patellar tendon and missed the rest of the season.

He faces a familiar foe in the Miami Dolphins, whom he faced twice a year as a member of the New England Patriots. He could be matched against Dolphins receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle.

“They got the best receiver group in the league,” Jackson said. “They are fast, probably the fastest guys we are going to face. We just got to come ready.”

Jackson went through training camp, only missing a couple of practices. The team was cautious with him, slowly ramping him up until he was ready to take on more and more.

He wanted to go through an entire training camp, get more familiar with the playbook, and get the communication down with his teammates.

“It’s a big difference from when I came in last year going into my second year with a team,” Jackson said.

Last season, he was signed to a five-year deal and missed most of training camp after having ankle surgery. He missed week one against Las Vegas but debuted in week two against Kansas City.

He was in and out of the lineup the next couple of weeks until the injury against Seattle. He rehabbed, studied, and worked hard during the offseason to get to this point.

In his mind, Jackson is a different player from the guy who came in last year to the one getting ready to play on Sunday. He wants to make an impact and help his team win.

“I feel like I’m home now,” Jackson said. “That’s the type of feeling that I’ll get this year.”

O Captain! My Captain!

The team announced nine team captains on Wednesday:

QB Justin Herbert, RB Austin Ekeler, WR Keenan Allen, C Corey Linsley, LS Josh Harris, DL Sebastian Joseph-Day, LB Eric Kendricks, edge rusher Khalil Mack, and S Derwin James.

Injury report

Rookie linebacker Daiyan Henley missed practice with a hamstring injury while edge rusher Chris Rumph was limited due to a hamstring injury.