The LA Chargers have a massive decision looming with the fifth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. General manager Joe Hortiz and head coach Jim Harbaugh are looking to reverse the course of the franchise as early as 2024 and it starts with a smart draft pick in this year's draft.
There are several compelling prospects for the Chargers to consider in the draft with many expecting Brock Bowers to be the selection. Los Angeles has a gaping hole at the tight end position and Bowers is one of the best tight end prospects to come into the league in recent years.
However, there are still prospects who are better than Bowers, particularly at the wide receiver position. Marvin Harrison Jr. is the best wide receiver prospect in recent history and if it was not for him, Malik Nabers would be an obvious WR1. Heck, Nabers would be the WR1 in most of the recent classes, that is how special he is.
But because of Keenan Allen, Joshua Palmer, and Quentin Johnston, some fans are convinced that the Chargers will wait until later in the draft to take another wideout. That may not actually be the case, though, as Hortiz recently revealed that his mindset in the draft is to take the best player available, regardless of position.
#Chargers GM Joe Hortiz talks about balancing BPA draft strategy with existing roster depth, and specifically why the team could choose to draft a WR at #5 overall:
— Dan W. (@DanWSports) February 27, 2024
🎥: @ProFootballTalk pic.twitter.com/DCyYHldIDX
Joe Hortiz may have just confirmed the Chargers will draft Malik Nabers
If Hortiz is telling the truth and is not trying to fire off smoke screens, then there is a pretty good chance that the Chargers will take the LSU wide receiver with the fifth pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Unless something unexpected happens, Nabers will be the best player available when the Chargers are on the clock.
Three of the first four teams in the draft order are likely going to take a quarterback in the draft while the Arizona Cardinals are likely going to take Harrison. That leaves Nabers to fall to the fifth pick and the Chargers can land a potential franchise wide receiver to play alongside Justin Herbert for the next decade.
Sure, the Chargers could theoretically have Bowers over Nabers on their own big board but that is unlikely. Nabers is an extremely special talent and if you remove the positional value of quarterbacks, he might just be the second-most talented player in this entire draft class.
A general manager who drafts the best available is going to take a wide receiver of this caliber every single time. Hortiz's comments in the clip are particularly revealing, too, when he mentions an older player getting hurt. Hortiz knows what he is stepping into with the receiver room, and is already teasing a key addition to that group.
Nothing is set in stone in the NFL but it is very likely that Nabers will be higher on the Chargers' board than Bowers. And if the team is truly picking the best player available then he will be the selection with the fifth pick.