The Los Angeles Chargers weren’t exactly hurting for playmakers heading into the playoffs, but it’s beginning to look like they’ll be getting one more at tight end in their wild-card matchup against the Baltimore Ravens.

Hunter Henry reportedly nearing return for NFL playoffs

Hunter Henry is expected to return to practice this week and take reps with the Chargers’ first-team offense, head coach Anthony Lynn announced Monday.

Henry is expected to return for the Ravens game, per ESPN, which would be his first game action in more than a year.

Henry has spent the entire season on injured reserve after tearing his ACL during the team’s first day of OTAs in May. He was previously rumored to be working toward a return in the regular season, and even earlier according to a certain pundit out there.

What Hunter Henry could bring to the Chargers

Even though the Chargers rank sixth in the league in points per game with 26.8, Henry’s absence has been clear on the squad’s tight end depth chart.

After two years of promising work while splitting time with the aging Antonio Gates, Henry was lined up to completely take over the position this year until his injury. In Henry’s absence, the Chargers brought Gates back for another season and used Virgil Green as well.

Gates and Green combined for 543 receiving yards and three touchdowns in the regular season, with neither ranking among the team’s top 5 receivers. By himself in part-time work last year, Henry posted 579 receiving yards and four touchdowns while also blocking well, so you can imagine he might bring a different look for the Chargers against the Ravens’ top-ranked defense.

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