We can assume who the Chargers will take when they’re on the clock all we want, but the unthinkable is always bound to happen come draft day.
Teams will do whatever it takes to get their guy, so trades will occur. So let’s say there’s a team that wants a quarterback or skill player, but they feel like they won’t be there when they pick they’re going to trade up.
If Los Angeles was to trade down and stockpile draft picks, who might they consider?
Here are five players that could be in consideration for the Bolts if they trade down:
WR Jalin Hyatt, Tennessee
The Chargers are missing one element that would maximize quarterback Justin Herbert’s talents: speed.
Hyatt, the reigning Biletnikoff Award recipient, has an electric vertical speed, which he used to outrun SEC defenders routinely. Additionally, he has elite ball-tracking skills and is excellent at the catch point.
Hyatt caught 67 passes for 1,267 yards and 15 touchdowns this season. He averaged 18.9 yards per catch, ranked 13th in the nation, and had 14 catches on balls thrown at least 20 yards downfield, tied for fourth.
WR Josh Downs, North Carolina
Downs is an explosive runner after the catch. He is great at finding room in open space and taking it for chunk yards. He is a talented route runner with a full route tree. Given his shiftiness and dynamic ability in the open field, Downs can come in and immediately make a play as a return man, too.
Downs left North Carolina ranked No. 3 in the program in career receptions with 202. He had 2,483 receiving yards (No. 4 all-time at UNC) and 22 touchdown catches (No. 2) in his career as a Tar Heel. He put up back-to-back 1,000 receiving-yard seasons in 2021 and 2022.
EDGE BJ Ojulari, LSU
The Chargers need more talent in the edge defender room behind Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack. Last season, we saw Los Angeles struggle to get pressure off the edge after Bosa went down with a groin injury in Week 3. Kyle Van Noy did down the stretch, but he is now a free agent.
Ojulari, the brother of Azeez, the EDGE for the Giants, finished second only to Alabama’s Will Anderson among SEC defenders in pressure percentage in 2022. Only 20 years of age, Ojulari has the burst, bend and ascending pass rush repertoire to pin his ears back and win the edge consistently.
DL Adetomiwa Adebawore, Northwestern
The Chargers re-signed Morgan Fox, but they still need more pass-rush juice from the interior. Adebawore, a major riser during the pre-draft process after a great showing at the Senior Bowl and an eye-popping testing portion at the combine, could garner some real interest.
At 6-foot-2 and 282 pounds, Adebawore is an athletic penetrator with a great first step who knows how to set up and counter blockers and uses his long levers to win at the point of attack. He has an incredible motor, plays the run down the line and is always around the football. Furthermore, Adebawore is versatile, having played three, 4i and five-technique and edge defender at Northwestern.
Adebawore led the Wildcats in 2022 with five sacks while also recording 38 total tackles, nine for loss and two forced fumbles in 12 games.
TE Darnell Washington, Georgia
The Chargers need to bring in a complete tight end. Washington would boost the offense significantly in multiple ways, starting with his immense physical blocking skills on the edge in pass protection and the run game, an area in which Los Angeles had a problem this past season.
But Washington is also a matchup nightmare in the passing game, particularly the red zone, with strong hands, route running, and yards-after-catch ability over the middle of the field. You don’t come around 6-foot-7 and 264 pounds with the elite traits that Washington possesses.
