Chargers safety Derwin James has earned a three-year extension that makes him the highest-paid safety in the league, but at a Wednesday press conference his mind kept drifting to one thing: ending the franchise’s playoff struggles by winning a Super Bowl.
Derwin James took the podium on Wednesday with a payday in hand and a different finish line in sight.
This week, the Chargers safety signed a three-year extension that makes him the highest-paid safety in the league. It’s a contract that reflects the individual accomplishments James has built since arriving in the NFL as a 2018 first-round pick. Yet the numbers that matter most to him right now aren’t about his salary—they’re about the Chargers’ ceiling.
Since James entered the league, the Chargers have made the playoffs four times and won one playoff game. At the press conference, he pivoted from the deal itself to the one record he wants changed. “Honestly. I want to win. win the Super Bowl so bad. man. so coming out here and just working. working. working hard as I can every day. and I feel like that’s what I’m so focused on. ” James said. via Dan Greenspan of the Associated Press. “The money’s good. yeah. it’s good. but I can’t get my thoughts off being the last team playing.”.
His extension also buys the team real runway. The Chargers now have at least three years beyond 2026 to chase the championship he’s talking about. with James continuing to be a key part of a defense that has benefited from his versatile contributions. For James. the celebration isn’t complete until the final game is theirs—and until the Chargers stop being the team left out when the season is still running.
Derwin James Los Angeles Chargers NFL Super Bowl contract extension highest-paid safety