Fifth-round pick Oronde Gadsden II was not necessarily thought of to be a deeply integral part of the LA Chargers this year. Sure, Jim Harbaugh did hype up the Gadsden selection after the Bolts traded up to pick him on day three. But it's particularly rare to see a late-round rookie tight end get overly involved in any team's offense.
During OTAs and minicamp, it became hard to ignore the tangible momentum for Gadsden. On the second day of minicamp with both the rookies and vets in attendance, he had seven catches. During the first day of minicamp, The Athletic's Daniel Popper wrote about QB Justin Herbert connecting with the Syracuse product on an explosive wheel route.
On top of the receiving prowess on the field, the coaches have had nothing but glowing things to say about Gadsden off of it. HC Jim Harbaugh raved about his work ethic and potential. TEs coach Andy Bischoff likened him to Pro Bowl tight end Darren Waller. Gadsden created headlines when he talked about being at the Chargers' facility by 5:30AM every day.
The Oronde Gadsden II hype train is barreling toward Chargers training camp
All of the progress for Gadsden so far has been very positive. But how much he plays this year will be determined in part by his performance in the summer stage of the offseason. The Chargers will have numerous padded practices between next week and August 9th. How will Gadsden's blocking show through? It's the one question mark on his college tape for all of his success as a receiver and mover after the catch.
Gadsden will need to prove his functionality as a blocker in order to play. That's obviously a core fundamental of the Greg Roman offense, even if we're designating the rookie fifth-rounder as more of an F than Y tight end. It was one of the key reasons that Stone Smartt couldn't see more snaps and reps on the field last season in spite of some flashes vs. Kansas City and Tampa Bay.
But there are two key factors that make me feel confident in Gadsden's ability to improve as a blocker. He did tell the media at rookie OTAs that he's now up to 250 pounds compared to 190 when he first switched positions in college. TEs coach Andy Bischoff also spoke highly of Gadsden's willingness to learn and compete as a blocker:
"I think he's better than we thought. His fundamentals are clean," Bischoff said of Gadsden as a blocker. "He has a willingness. When we do a one-man sled in the corner of the field, he's just as into it as Tucker Fisk." Gadsden also told Bischoff that he wanted to be able to play on every down.
One of my key storylines in this training camp is whether Gadsden's momentum will continue to grow as we head into the regular season. If it does, the Chargers could have a lot more playmaking potential at the TE position than previously thought.