It is still early in the 2024 season but with the year hitting the unofficial quarter mark after Week 4 some attention has turned to the 2025 NFL Draft. LA Chargers fans are more concerned about the team's injuries and making a playoff push but that has not stopped some analysts from diving into the draft world.
This includes Trevor Sikkema of Pro Football Focus, who put together his first 2025 NFL mock draft during the 2024 season this week. Sikkema used the current draft order (which is bound to change) and the exercise served as a conversation of team needs more than anything else.
With the 12th pick in this mock draft, the Chargers selected Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty, who has been lighting the college world on fire this season. What makes Jeanty to the Chargers such a compelling storyline isn't just the fact he has been the best running back in college football, it is who he has been compared to.
Draft analyst Dane Brugler of The Athletic, who does not throw out lofty comparisons all that often, compared the Boise State running back to none other than LaDainian Tomlinson.
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Ashton Jeanty being compared to LaDainian Tomlinson makes him an early Chargers fan favorite
LaDainian Tomlinson is the most beloved player in Chargers franchise history and he is also one of the best running backs in the history of the sport. Comparing anyone to him is a big deal, and it is an even bigger deal for Chargers fans.
It does not matter what the other roster needs are on the team. It does not matter if the passing game is still broken, if the offensive line needs help, or if there is a big hole on defense. If there is a prospect on the board who is being compared to LT, Chargers fans will want him.
Of course, we are still extremely early in the draft process and the hope is that the Chargers will be picking in the 20s, not the early teens. And if that hope ends up coming true, the odds of actually being able to draft Jeanty are slim.
The Jeanty hype train has already left the station and he is only going to continue to climb the draft boards. It would not be surprising if he sees a similar surge as Bijan Robinson, who went eighth overall in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Jeanty has carried the ball 82 times for 845 yards with 13 rushing touchdowns through four games this season. No, those are not numbers from EA Sports College Football 25. This is real life.