BIOGRAPHY
Derwin James was born August 3, 1996, in Haines City, Florida. He is a strong safety in the NFL. James entered his true freshman season at Florida State in 2015 as a backup but eventually became a starter. As a freshman in 2015, James played in 12 games with 91 tackles, 4.5 sacks, four passes defended, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries.
Before his sophomore season, James was ranked as the third-best second-year player, behind only Josh Rosen and Calvin Ridley, by Lance Zierlein. On September 13, 2016, it was revealed that James would undergo knee surgery to repair a lateral meniscus tear and cartilage damage. Recovery time required 5 to 7 weeks. His sophomore year was short-lived as James only played two games with 11 tackles and an interception. He was granted a redshirt for his following year, and as a redshirted sophomore in 2017, he played in 12 games, finishing with 84 tackles, 2 interceptions, 11 passes defended, and a sack. On December 7, 2017, James decided to forgo his remaining two years of eligibility and enter the 2018 NFL Draft.
On December 5, 2017, James released a statement through his Instagram account that announced his decision to forgo his remaining eligibility and enter the 2018 NFL Draft.
James entered training camp slated as the starting strong safety but suffered a hamstring injury that limited his progress. He also saw competition for the role from veterans Adrian Phillips and Rayshawn Jenkins. Head coach Anthony Lynn named James the starting strong safety to begin the regular season, alongside free safety Jahleel Addae.
He made his professional regular-season debut and the first career start in the Los Angeles Chargers' season-opener against the Kansas City Chiefs and recorded three combined tackles, broke up two passes, and made his first career sack on quarterback Patrick Mahomes in their 38–28 loss. On September 23, 2018, James collected nine combined tackles, deflected a pass, and made his first professional interception during a 35–23 loss at the Los Angeles Rams in Week 3. James made his first career interception off a pass attempt by Rams' quarterback Jared Goff, which was originally intended for tight end Gerald Everett, in the endzone during the second quarter. On December 18, 2018, he was named to his first Pro Bowl in his rookie year. On July 28, 2019, James was ranked No. 31 on the NFL Top 100 players of 2019 list.
On August 15, it was revealed that James had been dealing with a stress fracture in his right foot. The injury required surgery, requiring a maximum of three months to recover. He was placed on injured reserve on September 1, 2019. He was designated for return from injured reserve on November 25, 2019, and began practicing with the team again. He was activated on November 30, 2019. On September 5, 2020, James was placed on season-ending injured reserve after undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus. He was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the team on December 15, 2020, and moved back to injured reserve on January 7, 2021.
Derwin James agreed to a 4-year $76.4M extension on August 17, 2022 with the Los Angeles Chargers.
In 2023, Derwin James was selected to his 3rd Pro Bowl.
