D+
Los Angeles Chargers
The Chargers cashed the board's mistake on Cooper Jr.: D+.
by Boltzy55 ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 13 picks
· 4 steals
· 1 reaches
The Chargers lost the trade war and it was not close, handing partners the better end again and again.
They covered a lot of ground and still skipped quarterback, which is a strange place to end up. Every board in the league had Van Pran lower, and that gap is the story. Getting Cooper Jr. where they did is the sort of value that quietly makes a class.
Bottom line, they will need several of these picks to beat their grades just to break even, and quarterback is still a hole.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 22 they get an anchor for the defensive front. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
No edge and no loss on Ennis Rakestraw Jr. in the 37th pick; it is a wash and a sensible one. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Junior Colson in slot 50 is fair value, right on his grade. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
A premium they did not need to pay, Sedrick Van Pran a notch or two before his time. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Value with a capital V on Ja'Lynn Polk in the Round 3 slot, a genuine coup. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
They took Jonah Elliss at par in pick 87, which is nothing to complain about. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
No drama and no debate, MarShawn Lloyd went about where he belonged in the 106th overall pick. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
A tidy little value on Chau Smith-Wade in the Round 5 slot, a step better than break-even. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Javion Cohen slid further than he should have, and pick 183 is lovely value for the offensive lineman. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Tahj Washington at the 213th pick is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Michael Barrett in pick No. 223 lands just on the right side of the ledger. Stacking talent where they were already deep.
By-the-book stuff, Jordan Magee at No. 240 squarely in line with his ranking. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
Ryan Cooper Jr. at Round 7, Pick 36 is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.