The Chargers recently completed what most believe to be a successful draft. While I like most of the picks, I’m not yet ready to jump onboard the "Harbaugh is a genius!" bandwagon. While it won’t take a lot to improve upon 2023’s dismal 5-12 record, I’m not so sure that the team is much better than that 2023 team, who was probably better than their record indicated. That said, I’ve always thought that former HC Brandon Staley was a pathetic head coach, even though I understand that many of his players thought highly of him. There’s no doubt that HC Jim Harbaugh is a major upgrade. This report will discuss the current state of the Bolts, with an emphasis on the draft and free agent moves. Oh, and if you want me to grade their draft, I’d give them a B.

QB: The good news for QB Justin Herbert is that he is certainly one of the top 10 quarterbacks in the NFL, and quite possibly one of the top 5. The bad news is that the Chargers will likely lean a lot more heavily on the run, which could hurt Herbert’s numbers. Further, in my view, the Chargers receivers are not nearly as good as what he’s had in the past. And former Chargers RB Austin Eckler was a prolific pass catcher. Don’t expect to see that from his replacements, which again, could hurt his number.

RB: This is one of the few areas where it’s likely that the team got better. RB Gus Edwards is a hard-nosed quality power back that has the potential to put up solid numbers. The addition of RB J.K. Dobbins is intriguing, as he’s shifty and fast. But can he stay healthy? The addition of huge OT Joe Alt in the 1^stround, should help to beef up the O-Line, protect Harbaugh & open some holes for the running backs. The Chargers also selected RB Kimani Vidal in the 6^th round out of Troy. Vidal looks like a good selection, but he probably won’t make a major impact this season, barring injuries.

WR: Because the Chargers lost their 2 most prolific receivers, i.e. WR Keenan Allen and WR Mike Williams, I thought they’d like go with a wideout with their first pick. Instead, they selected WR Ladd McConkey out of Georgia in round 2, and WR Brenden Rice out of USC in the 7^th round. McConkey should be able to make an impact sooner than later. We’ll see about Rice. They’ve also added WR D.J. Chark, who has had some good years, but hasn’t done a lot lately and there are injury concerns. Still, he’s 27 and represents a legit deep threat. I’m still not sold on WR Quentin Johnston, although he did improve last year as the season wore on. WR Joshua Palmer is a good receiver but may be more suited to a #3 receiver role. The Chargers may add another known receiver soon via free agency.

TE: I’m not sure that the team has improved at tight end. Perhaps in terms of blocking, but not with respect to receiving. Their current options are TE Will Dissly, TE Hayden Hurst, TE Donald Parham, Jr., and TE Stone Smartt. Parham probably has the most value from a fantasy perspective, as he is a deep threat with receiving abilities. But as of this writing, I don’t see any of them as being particularly strong fantasy options.

PK: The kicker remains PK Cameron Dicker aka "Dicker the Kicker", who is solid and a mid-tier fantasy kicker, or better.

DEF: The Chargers added LB Junior Colson from Michigan in the 3^rd round, DT Justin Eboigbe out of Alabama in the 4^th round, CB Tarheeb Still out of Maryland in the 5^th round and also CB Cam Hart from Notre Dame also in the 5^th round. The Chargers have made a few defensive free agent moves, but I don’t see any of them as being significant enough to warrant much discussion. The Chargers defense has been sketchy for as long as I can recall. Start them off as a middle-of-the-pack fantasy option and we’ll see how that perform in 2024.

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