Derwin James

Los Angeles ChargersOVERPAID

Pos S

Updated October 8, 2026

Compare Derwin James S rankings →

Model Score

94.2 MODEL

2018

91.7

2019

89.0

2021

89.8

2022

83.5

2023

85.8

2024

89.8

2025

90.7

2026

94.2

How good he is at what he is supposed to be doing, out of 100. Not a projection of what he will do next, and not a read on his contract. Median is about 70, and a 95 is rare. How it is built →

STM Take

Four Pro Bowls plus two 1st-team All-Pros plus the 2024 tier 1 (#5) STTM peak plus the Florida State 17th overall draft pedigree establishes James as one of the elite safeties of his generation. The Chargers' Jim Harbaugh defensive scheme appears to be sustaining the elite ceiling. The 2026 question is whether James earns his fifth Pro Bowl plus crosses into tier 1 territory or whether the structural late-prime ceiling stabilizes at tier 2.

James came out of Florida State as the Los Angeles Chargers' 1st-round pick (17th overall) in 2018. He has made four Pro Bowls (2018, 2021, 2022, 2024) plus earned two 1st-team All-Pro selections (2018, 2021). His STTM career runs tier 1 (#8) in 2021, tier 3 (#17) in 2022, tier 6 (#42) in 2023, tier 1 (#5) in 2024 Pro Bowl, and tier 2 (#9) in 2025.

Strengths

Four Pro Bowls (2018, 2021, 2022, 2024) plus two 1st-team All-Pros (2018, 2021) plus 2024 tier 1 (#5) STTM peak establishes elite S career résumé.
Florida State 17th overall draft pedigree plus eight years of NFL elite production gives him the rare durability-and-excellence career foundation.

Concerns

Career STTM volatility (tier 1 in 2021, tier 3 in 2022, tier 6 in 2023, tier 1 in 2024, tier 2 in 2025) confirms the ceiling can swing across seasons.
Multi-year injury history (multiple foot, knee absences) puts continued durability question on every 2026 projection.

What to watch: Whether James earns his fifth Pro Bowl in 2026 plus holds tier 1 (top 10), the threshold for closing the elite S career case.