C+
Los Angeles Chargers
A costly weekend of dealing drags the Chargers to a C+.
by DBoltzz2024 ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 11 picks
· 2 steals
· 5 reaches
The trade table was where it all came apart. The Chargers shipped out far more than they hauled back, and no amount of spin dresses up the bill. Fine in stretches, shaky in others: a C+.
Thomas has a lot of ground to make up just to look fairly priced. They covered a lot of ground and still skipped cornerback, which is a strange place to end up.
The Chargers paired the rookies with proven help, Tariq Woolen leading the way. Getting Worthy where they did is the sort of value that quietly makes a class.
Not a disaster, not a triumph, just a middling class.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 19th pick they get a building block for the line at fair value. A real need, handled.
A straight-up fair deal on Kris Jenkins at pick 41, value and slot in agreement. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Nice patience on Xavier Worthy, who had no business lasting to the 51st overall pick. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They jumped the gun on Ruke Orhorhoro, taking him earlier than his grade liked. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A clean, defensible pick in No. 69 with a little surplus value in Payton Wilson. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
Bucky Irving at slot 83 jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. The roster fit checks out.
Malik Washington at pick No. 106 is a conviction pick that outran the value. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
They talked themselves into Braelon Allen at Round 5, Pick 3, and the board did not agree. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Michael Barrett at the 183rd overall pick is right where the board had him, plain and simple. They doubled down on a strength rather than a need.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Jared Wiley in No. 223. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Xavier Thomas at the Round 7 slot is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.