C+
Los Angeles Chargers
Flashes of a plan, unevenly executed. Chargers: C+.
by TheUltimateCharge ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 11 picks
· 1 steals
· 7 reaches
The Chargers looked at the value chart, folded it up, and took J.J. Weaver at Round 7, Pick 33 regardless, 64 picks early. For now it grades a C+, with the swing picks left to settle the rest.
A whole weekend of picks and quarterback is somehow still a want. The Rice pick is the one they will point to when this weekend is judged.
If Jackson Powers-Johnson and a couple of the gambles land, hindsight will be kinder than this grade.
Pick-by-Pick
In slot 11 they get a long-term starter on the line, though the board says they badly overpaid.
In Round 1, Pick 23 they get an anchor for the defensive front, a steep price for the projection. The biggest hole, addressed.
They took Payton Wilson at par in No. 51, which is nothing to complain about. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
No edge and no loss on Mike Sainristil in the 69th overall pick; it is a wash and a sensible one. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A conviction pick on MarShawn Lloyd at pick 84 that the board grades a round light. A need, and now a little less of one.
A quiet steal in the 105th pick: Brenden Rice for less than the market said. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They paid sticker price for Matt Goncalves in slot 110, and that is fine. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
AJ Barner at the Round 5 slot is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. The roster fit checks out.
A wild overpay on Frank Gore Jr. in the 181st pick, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Michael Barrett in Round 7, Pick 5 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, J.J. Weaver well ahead of where he belonged. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.