Conventional wisdom, along with a fair number of pundits from coast to coast, suggests the Chargers will trade the fifth overall pick in the NFL draft Thursday, acquire additional draft capital and then seek to fill a number of pressing roster needs with an additional selection or two or three.
But will they?
Can they even pull it off?
Joe Hortiz, the Chargers’ new general manager, made it clear last week that he would not simply make a trade just to make a trade. He would not trade value for value. He would not accept anything less than a win for himself and the Chargers. A trade that benefits each team equally wasn’t in the cards.
Hortiz and Jim Harbaugh, the Chargers’ new coach, began their tenures by making difficult but necessary moves last month to comply with the NFL’s salary cap rules. So, veteran wide receivers Keenan Allen and Mike Williams were jettisoned, two major salary cap casualties.
Hortiz and Harbaugh were active in free agency, starting last month, filling gaps in the roster and adding depth with a series of moves that were designed with cap flexibility in mind. They didn’t go out and break the piggy bank in order to remake the roster in their own images, creating a different kind of a team.
Now, with the draft finally at hand, Hortiz and Harbaugh will get another chance to overhaul the roster and put their stamp on the Chargers. They have saved some of the best of what’s been working for the Chargers, but Thursday, Friday and Saturday mark another significant milestone for them.
So, will they make a move? Or won’t they?
Will they keep the pick? Whom might they select if they do?
One thing is for sure.
“I think I’ll be excited,” Hortiz said. “I think there will be some anxiety. Pressure. I think there’s pressure in every draft, and I’ve felt it before. … (But) I don’t think I’ll feel pressure because we’ll have the plan set, what we’re going to do if this happens, if that happens. If something happens that we don’t anticipate, which I’d be surprised if it does, you adjust and you think quickly and you move and you react and make the decision.
“I don’t think I’ll feel pressure. I think I’ll feel excitement and anxiety because it’s the first time.”
Hortiz left the Baltimore Ravens for his first general manager’s job after a decades-long career serving in a variety of positions. Harbaugh returned to the NFL after departing the University of Michigan after nine years, leading the Wolverines to a 15-0 record and the 2023 national championship.
So, if there is pressure, it’s to get their first draft together right.
No mistakes.
Conventional wisdom also suggests the Chargers should draft a wide receiver or two to replace the departed Allen, who set a franchise record for receptions this past season, and Williams, who sat out most of the year because of a knee injury. Marvin Harrison Jr. of Ohio State or Malik Nabers of LSU could be theirs at No. 5.
Hortiz and Harbaugh also want to give the Chargers something they haven’t had since the heady days of LaDainian Tomlinson, and that’s a reliable and effective rushing game. They want to play physical football and give quarterback Justin Herbert added options beyond passing, passing and passing some more.
Perhaps a tackle like Notre Dame’s Joe Alt could be the Chargers’ top pick.
No matter what, it would seem like an offensive player should be atop their most-wanted list, especially since the first round is loaded with talented offensive players. Hortiz speculated last week that quarterbacks would be selected with each of the first four picks, leaving the Chargers to select Harrison.
Or a favorable trade might alter Hortiz’s plans for the fifth pick.
It could mean the Chargers select a tight end like Brock Bowers with a later pick, say, in the teens and then enable them to pick a wide receiver even farther down their draft list, perhaps in the latter part of the first round or early in the second. It’s got to be favorable for Hortiz to make the move, though.
Related Articles
NFL draft: Will the Chargers prioritize Michigan defensive players?
NFL draft: Chargers looking to upgrade offensive depth at all positions
NFL draft: Will the Chargers keep the fifth overall pick or trade it?
Alexander: Chargers might trade the No. 5 pick – and they should
NFL draft: Will the Chargers consider WR Marvin Harrison Jr. best available?
What requirements would Hortiz need to complete a trade?
“That we’ve gotten a nice result in picks and value,” he said. “That’s going to be the reason because there are really good players, great players, that we’re going to be staring at (with the fifth pick). If we’re going to trade away from great players, there has to be a reason, in terms of value, for us.
“Certainly, there are going to be more great players in the draft, but it has to make sense to you and it has to make sense to the team that is wanting to come up.”
