Rams win over Vikings gives Chargers one of the most blessed picks in the NFL Draft

AFC Wild Card Playoffs: Los Angeles Chargers v Houston Texans
AFC Wild Card Playoffs: Los Angeles Chargers v Houston Texans | Brooke Sutton/GettyImages

The only good thing that came out of the LA Chargers' AFC Wild-Card Round loss to the Houston Texans is that the team will have a higher pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. This one silver lining does not even come close to making up for the pain after Saturday's loss, but it is at least something.

It may not seem like a big difference to some but there absolutely is a difference in picking in the low 20s vs. the high 20s. Not only is the Chargers' first-round pick a handful of spots higher than it would have been otherwise, but every other pick in every other round is also a handful of selections higher.

The six teams that lost in the Wild-Card Round are sorted from picks 19 to 24 based on regular-season winning percentage. With the 14-3 Minnesota Vikings losing to the LA Rams on Monday night, the Chargers officially earned the 22nd pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. A Rams win would have given the Bolts the 23rd pick.

Again, there may not be a perceived difference between the 22nd and 23rd pick, but perception is not always a reality.

Chargers' 22nd overall pick has been blessed in recent years

Not every selection has been a home run but there is an exceptional five-year history with the 22nd overall pick in the NFL Draft. History tends to repeat itself, and the Chargers have to be thrilled with the recent history of the 22nd pick.

The last five players taken with the 22nd pick are as followed:

  • 2024: Quinyon Mitchell
  • 2023: Zay Flowers
  • 2022: Quay Walker
  • 2021: Caleb Farley
  • 2020: Justin Jefferson

Four of the last five 22nd picks have been successful at the NFL level to varying degrees. The only player who is a real miss is Caleb Farley, who has mostly been a miss because of his awful injury luck in the NFL.

Quinyon Mitchell turned in an excellent rookie season for the Philadelphia Eagles and is one of the best young cornerbacks in the entire league. Zay Flowers is the receiver the Chargers should have selected and earned his first trip to the Pro Bowl this season with 74 catches for 1,059 yards as a sophomore.

Quay Walker isn't a Pro Bowler but has been an above-average starting linebacker for the Green Bay Packers. Justin Jefferson needs no introduction, as he is the second-best wide receiver in the league only behind Ja'Marr Chase (with some arguing he is ahead of Chase as the best receiver in the leauge).

The 22nd overall pick has truly been blessed in recent years and the Chargers need to strike gold on the pick like the teams before them. Los Angeles is looking to build on the strong foundation laid in the 2024 season and that starts with the 2025 NFL Draft.

The Chargers made not have a top pick in the 2025 NFL Draft but if the history of the 22nd pick tells us anything, it is that you do not need a top-10 pick in the draft to land an impactful star.

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