Postdraft questions for the Chargers' top picks

LOS ANGELES -- The NFL draft represents franchise-altering opportunities for all 32 teams, but this year's was particularly valuable for this era of theLos Angeles Chargers.

Led by general manager Joe Hortiz, the organization doesn't believe in significant spending on outside players in NFL free agency, making the draft paramount.

Over the past three years, Hortiz's drafts have been productive with players becoming contributors as early as their rookie seasons, including cornerbackTarheeb Still (2024 fifth round), tight endOronde Gadsden(2025 fifth round), running backKimani Vidal (2024 sixth round) and wide receiver Ladd McConkey (2024 second round).

In the 2026 draft, the Chargers made eight picks, Hortiz's smallest class since he was hired in L.A. in 2024. And this draft class is also perhaps the one with the most questions:

Should first-rounder Akheem Mesidor's age make fans nervous?

Mesidor, the Chargers' pick at No. 22 and an edge rusher from the University of Miami, played six seasons of college football and turned 25 in April.

Mesidor represents the shifting college landscape. NIL money -- and the COVID pandemic which allotted players an extra season -- is why more top prospects like Mesidor are entering the NFL at an older age.

Mesidor is older than Chargers outside linebacker Tuli Tuipulotu, who is 23 and has already played three seasons, and older than last year's fourth-round outside linebacker Kyle Kennard, who is 24.

"Age is what it is, but he's experienced," Hortiz said. "You just watched the film, and he's a great player that can help us. And age is just a number."

Coach Jim Harbaugh said: "The ceiling's already high. He's already hit. ... So he's a man. He's ready to roll."

Mesidor has inside-out rushing ability, power, speed and a variance of rush moves. He had an ACC-best 12.5 sacks in 2025, giving the Chargers a player who is ready to contribute now and a replacement for OLB Odafe Oweh, who left in free agency.

The concern with Mesidor's age is how long he will be an effective player, but Hortiz pointed to Khalil Mack, who is 35 and still productive, as evidence Mesidor could be around for a while.

"When you take young players with older players, you look at the long term," Hortiz said. "Like, 'Hey, second contract, third contract.' Well, I mean, we got a guy who's ... 35. Still kicking ass."

According to ESPN Research, there have been three defensive first-round picks since 2000 to make their NFL debut at age 25 or older (all debuted at 25):

• The Colts drafted LB Rob Morris at No. 28 in 2000. He spent eight seasons in the NFL (all with Indianapolis), where he was a starter for several seasons and led the team in tackles in 2001, his second season.


• The Cowboys drafted CB Terence Newman No. 5 overall in 2003. He spent 15 seasons in the NFL, including the first nine with Dallas. He finished second in NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year voting and was a two-time Pro Bowler.


• The Falcons drafted DT Peria Jerry at No. 24 in 2009. He suffered a knee injury as a rookie in 2009 and retired after only five NFL seasons (all with the Falcons).

"Akheem, he's older, but he's not 35," Hortiz said.

Why did the Chargers draft a center in the second round?

The Chargers had a league-worst 54% pass block win rate last season, and quarterback Justin Herbert was the league's most pressured and hit quarterback. Hortiz responded by selecting four offensive linemen, the most for the Chargers in a single draft since 1991 (when the draft was 12 rounds long).

The first lineman the team took this year was 6-foot-5, 303-pound former Florida center Jake Slaughter, whom Hortiz picked in the second round. Each scout gets a blue star for a prospect, signifying that person as their favorite player in the draft. Slaughter was Hortiz's blue star.

"Everyone had pretty much the same exact grade, which was a high-end grade," Hortiz said. "We got some calls and texts after we took them from other teams, which always makes you feel good. Like 'Damn, you took our guy.' So it was fun to hear that.'"

The pick came as a surprise. The Chargers signed center Tyler Biadasz to a three-year deal in the offseason to be the team's starting center, and Slaughter played all of his 2,053 snaps in college at center. But Hortiz said the plan is for Slaughter to compete for the starting job at left guard, a position he has never played.

Hortiz said they evaluated Slaughter with guard in mind, looking for plays where he has a defender directly lined up in front of him, not shaded to either side, as is most often the case at center.

"How's he handle that? How's the anchor? Can he gain leverage? Can he work the angle? And he does all those things," Hortiz said. "And then we watch him get up into space, watch him reach guys at the second level, cut off the backside. He does all those things extremely well."

Two anonymous scouts from different NFL teams, however, disagree with the Chargers' assessment. They made similar points about Slaughter, saying he isn't strong or bulky enough to be an effective guard in the NFL, and that he was best suited as a center.

There is precedence for the Slaughter pick and the results have varied, according to ESPN Research:

• Perhaps the most high-profile example here is Cesar Ruiz. The Saints drafted him in the first round in 2020. He played exclusively at center at Michigan in 2018-19 and has played 92.6% of his NFL snaps at guard. Ruiz played 14 games at right guard this season, where he ranked 48th in pass block win rate (91.2%), one spot ahead of former Chargers guard Mekhi Becton. Ruiz was the sixth-lowest graded guard in run block win rate (66.1%).


• Elgton Jenkins played 99.6% of his offensive snaps at center with Mississippi State in 2018. The Packers drafted him in the second round in 2019, and he has played 69.6% of his NFL snaps at guard and is a two-time Pro Bowler. However, the Packers moved him back to center last season, and he signed with the Browns in the offseason.


• The Bengals drafted Mike Jordan in the fourth round in 2019. He played exclusively at center with Ohio State in 2018 and has played 99.5% of his NFL snaps at guard with four different teams. In 2025, with Tampa Bay, he started nine games at left guard, ranking as the league's worst guard in run block win rate (62%) but fifth highest in pass block win rate (95.8%).

Is fourth-round wide receiverBrenen Thompsonoffensive coordinator Mike McDaniel's newTyreek Hill?

McDaniel, the Chargers' new OC, told Hortiz he would take his shirt off if the team found a way to land Thompson, the former Mississippi State pass catcher whom Hortiz selected in the fourth round. (McDaniel didn't take his shirt off.)

At 5-foot-9 and 164 pounds, Thompson will be the lightest player on the Chargers roster -- just behind receiverDerius Davis, who is listed at 165 pounds -- but he also will be the team's fastest player.

Thompson ran a 4.26-second 40-yard dash at the combine, the third-fastest time by a wide receiver since 2003. His size wasn't an issue in college football's most competitive conference, with an SEC-leading 1,054 receiving yards, which set the Mississippi State single-season record.

"I think it's the perfect fit," Thompson said. "The fan base and the team got exactly what they needed."

Harbaugh hesitated at first to make the Hill comparison but eventually did anyway.

McDaniel coached Hill, who has a world-class track speed, for three seasons with the Dolphins with some of the best and most innovative offenses in league history. Hill, who is5-foot-10 and 191 pounds, was a first-team All-Pro for his first two seasons with McDaniel, finishing top 10 in MVP voting and had a career high in yards (1,799) and touchdowns (13) in 2023.

"Tyreek's thicker than him coming out, but that similar size, height, speed combination," Hortiz said, while also comparing Thompson to former Eagles receiver DeSean Jackson.

Thompson will compete for targets in a crowded wide receiver room, led byLadd McConkey, Quentin Johnston,Tre' Harrisand Davis. Thompson has a very similar skill set to Davis, and he'll have to beat him out for offensive snaps and on returns, though both could do kick returns.

"Just a dynamic, explosive playmaker," Hortiz said. "Mike [McDaniel] loved. The scouts loved. Speed jumps out on film. His ability to track the ball downfield is really elite, and he takes the ball on the run and goes on. ... He's really just an explosive playmaker that we think just really adds and opens up this offense."

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