Bracket Fights

LOS ANGELES -- The 2024 NFL draft began Thursday night in Detroit and will wrap up on Saturday. The Los Angeles Chargers are scheduled to make nine of the draft's 257 picks, beginning with the No. 5 selection of the first round on Thursday night.

ESPN will provide pick-by-pick analysis of each of the Chargers' selections as they are made.

A look at each of Los Angeles' scheduled selections:

My take: Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz said they would stick to the process of picking the best player available, a strategy he learned from 26 years in the Baltimore Ravens personnel department that won him two Super Bowls. Selecting Alt on Thursday night supports this theory. The Chargers currently employ only four receivers -- none of whom has a season over 800 yards in the NFL -- and passed on taking the second-best receiver in the class. The Chargers are returning four of their five offensive line starters from last season and signed center Bradley Bozeman in free agency, but stuck to their strategy despite much bigger needs on the roster.

Will he start as a rookie? Yes. The Chargers wouldn't have invested a pick this high in Alt if they hadn't expected him to start. Harbaugh said that the best five players would start on the offensive line, noting that players could fit at any spot. Harbaugh said Rashawn Slater is the lone confirmed spot at left tackle. Harbaugh and Hortiz were noncommittal on a position for Alt but did say that he would be a tackle, likely pointing to Alt starting at right tackle, where he briefly played during his freshman fall camp at Notre Dame.

Key stat: Justin Herbert has been pressured 828 times since being drafted in 2020, second most in the NFL during that time. Herbert was constantly under pressure last season; that pressure resulted in a season-ending right index finger fracture on a sack against the Denver Broncos in Week 14. The Chargers invested in Alt to protect the franchise's most important player and build a running offense to help elevate Herbert's game. Last season, Herbert led the NFL in touchdown-to-interception ratio when he wasn't pressured -- his 17-1 ratio is the fourth-best mark since ESPN began tracking QB pressures in 2006.

My take: After trading Keenan Allen and releasing Mike Williams, the Chargers came into the draft with just four receivers on the roster. None among that receiving group of Joshua Palmer, Quentin Johnston, Derius Davis and Simi Fehoko had ever topped 800 yards in an NFL season. Since Herbert entered the league in 2020, he has always had a coterie of reliable pass-catchers, including players like running back Austin Ekeler and tight end Gerald Everett, who both left in free agency. McConkey, the Chargers hope, gives Herbert another player he can count on in the passing offense after many key departures.

When will he be expected to get regular playing time? Immediately. McConkey should be -- at worst -- the Chargers' third receiver behind Johnston and Palmer because of their experience. There could be a scenario, however, where McConkey becomes a regular starter early next season. Johnston, the Chargers' first-round pick in last year's draft, struggled in his first season with drops, and Palmer battled knee and head injuries throughout the year, which forced him to miss seven games. Even if McConkey doesn't leapfrog Johnston and Palmer, he should have an immediate role on offense.

My take: This was a position of need for the Chargers and Colson, who was a second-team Big Ten selection and led the team with 95 tackles last season, will bring necessary competition to a mostly unproven group. Both of the Chargers' starting outside linebackers in 2023 won't be back next season, as Kenneth Murray Jr. signed with the Tennessee Titans in free agency and Eric Kendricks was released in March. Linebackers Daiyan Henley (51 defensive snaps in 2023) and Nick Niemann (238 defensive snaps in 2023) are the Chargers' lone returning linebackers from last season, but they also signed Denzel Perryman and Troy Dye.

Ties to the team to know: Colson will join many familiar faces on the Chargers coaching staff, including coach Jim Harbaugh and defensive coordinator Jesse Minter. Colson will also reunite with defensive tackle Christopher Hinton, who played his final season at Michigan during Colson's freshman year. Former Carolina Panthers coach Matt Rhule was the last head coach to draft a player he coached in college (DT Bravvion Roy, 6th round in 2020). It's the second time this has happened in the last ten years.

What's next: Hortiz has covered some of the Chargers' biggest needs in the offensive line, tackle and receiver through the first two days, but the Chargers still have holes. Most notably, the Chargers have a void at cornerback and interior defensive line. The Chargers' pass defense was their Achilles heel last season, allowing 249.8 passing yards per game, ranking 29th in the NFL. As for their interior defensive line, the Chargers released defensive tackle Sebastian Joseph-Day last season and Austin Johnson signed with the Buffalo Bills in free agency, so investing in a rookie at that spot would make sense on Day 3. The Chargers could also double-dip on receiver or any of their other needs.