Los Angeles Chargers draft grades: Home runs and head scratchers

Los Angeles Chargers draft grade: C

Depending on how the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft fell, some believed that wide receiver would be on the radar for the Los Angeles Chargers. With Keenan Allen and Mike Williams as their clear top two wide receivers, the team could have been looking to get a more solid third option.

In the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft, the Los Angeles Chargers addressed that with Tennessee wide receiver Josh Palmer. Palmer is a player that seems to have a lot of upside, but was not the best option of the board, in my opinion.

When you watch Josh Palmer play, you can’t help but be intrigued. Even at just 6-foot-1, Palmer plays as a big-body receiver who can shield defenders and go up and high point the football. He doesn’t seem to have great top-end speed, but he is a very viable deep threat.

Palmer isn’t a receiver that is a nuanced route runner. He has some suddenness at the top of his routes, but he usually just uses his size to his advantage to catch intermediate passes. While he allows his quarterback to just throw it up and he will go and get it, I don’t think he was the best option or fit for the Los Angeles Chargers.

As I said with the Cleveland Browns third-round wide receiver selection in their draft grade article, I feel like there were better options on the board. Be it a different position like edge rusher Ronnie Perkins, guard Wyatt Davis or linebacker Jabril Cox, or even another receiver like Dyami Brown, Amari Rodgers, Amon-Ra St. Brown, or Tylan Wallace, I would have gone in a different direction.

Josh Palmer actually reminds me quite a bit of Mike Williams, who the Los Angeles Chargers already have in the fold. While Palmer has enough upside for me to not completely hate the pick, I just think a player with a different skill set would have been a better fit at this point in the draft.

Los Angeles Chargers draft grade: B+

With their third-round pick, the Los Angeles Chargers addressed their need at tight end with Georgia’s Tre’ McKitty.

After the departure of tight end Hunter Henry this offseason to the New England Patriots, the Los Angeles Chargers needed to bring in some more viable options to play the position. In free agency, the team signed veteran Jared Cook. In the draft, they selected someone very similar.

When I watched Tre’ McKitty’s tape, I saw a lot of Jared Cook in his game. It’s not just because they wear the same number, either. At Georgia and Florida State before that, McKitty showed his athleticism as a pass catcher. He is a fluid mover who is very effective with the ball in his hands.

McKitty is very effective up the seam and on shorter, quicker routes. At this point in his career, he isn’t the most nuanced route runner, but finds a way to impact the game. He has always tracked the ball well down the field, and has become a solid blocker as he has bulked up a little bit throughout his time in college.

As a rookie, Tre’ McKitty will get the chance to learn behind an effective veteran in Jared Cook. The talent and upside are there with McKitty, and if he can be an open book and develop quickly as a rookie, he could play a big role in a dynamic offense in the very near future.

Los Angeles Chargers draft grade: A-

Chris Rumph II is a player that I really liked in the 2021 NFL Draft. Many people seemed to be sleeping on the potential of the Duke edge rusher, leading me to believe the Los Angeles Chargers may have been able to get him a little later in the draft. However, the team used a fourth-round selection on Chris Rumph II.

With Melvin Ingram still likely leaving in free agency, the Los Angeles Chargers are set to rely heavily on Joey Bosa and Uchenna Nwosu in 2021. The team really needed to add depth on the edge, and Rumph should provide that right away.

Chris Rumph II is a very long and athletic player with decent bend around the edge. He is very slippery on his way into the backfield, making him incredibly hard to block. He will need to add play strength to his frame to set a more solid edge and to better take on blockers, but with time to develop behind the likes of Bosa and Nwosu, he could become something special.

When you watch Chris Rumph II you see shades of Leonard Floyd coming out of Georgia. Floyd had a career season last season under the direction of Brandon Staley. With Staley now leading the Los Angeles Chargers, Rumph should have a bright future, as well as a role right away as a rookie.