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Seeing two receivers fly off the draft board in the first seven picks of the second round made Joe Hortiz squirm. With an eye on Mississippi receiver Tre Harris, the Chargers’ general manager wondered if he should make an aggressive move to trade up from the 55th pick.
John Spanos stepped in to ease the anxious room.
“You’re going to get him,” Hortiz recalled the Chargers’ president of football operations urging the room. “Just be patient.”
“And we were,” Hortiz said. “And we got him.”
The Chargers gave coach Jim Harbaugh another run option, selecting North Carolina tailback Omarion Hampton with the No. 22 pick of the NFL draft.
Patience defined the final two days of the Chargers’ draft. From the front office that didn’t sacrifice assets to jump ahead early. And from their picks who took circuitous routes to the NFL and waited days to hear their names called.
Harris, the Chargers’ second second-round wide receiver selection in as many years, was a high school quarterback before he became a second-team All-American receiver. Third-round pick defensive tackle Jamaree Caldwell went through two junior colleges and two Division I schools to become the 86th overall selection.
Hortiz was fixated on Harris since Thursday night, when he assured coach Jim Harbaugh that the 6-foot-3, 210-pound prospect still would be on the board when the Chargers picked again in the second round Friday. They both knew the importance of adding a sure-handed, downfield threat for quarterback Justin Herbert.
Harris — the sixth Mississippi player to record a 1,000-yard receiving season — believes he fits the bill.
“I can make those tough and contested catches whenever people may not think I’m open,” said Harris, who had 1,030 yards and seven touchdowns last season, his second with the Rebels after transferring from Louisiana Tech. “But at the end of the day, you’re going to get a hard worker out of me. You’re going to get a competitor out of me and you’re going to get the best out of me for sure.”
Of the Chargers’ nine draft picks, five were on the offensive side with four at skill positions to support Herbert. The Chargers drafted Auburn receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith in the fifth round (158th overall) and traded up 16 picks to snag Syracuse tight end Oronde Gadsden II with the 165th selection. Gadsden, a 6-5, 236-pound former receiver, set the Syracuse record for career receptions (141) and receiving yards (1,870) for a tight end despite taking up the position only as a sophomore and playing two games as a junior because of injury.
The Chargers are confident they’ve found players who possess high football IQ, speed and versatility with their final six picks of the 2025 NFL draft.
In the fourth round, the Chargers bolstered an edge rushing group in flux with South Carolina outside linebacker Kyle Kennard. The Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner for stellar defense had 11½ sacks last year and will help fill the void of Joey Bosa, who was released this offseason.
Six players, including sixth-round picks Branson Taylor, a guard out of Pittsburgh (199th overall), Clemson safety R.J. Mickens (214th) and seventh-round cornerback Trikweze Bridges of Florida prolonged their collegiate careers with the extra eligibility from the pandemic. The additional year has helped many prospects emerge as potential immediate impact players as they transition to the pros.
“I think for a lot of players, just getting that extra year of maturity, those reps, polishing up your game, it helps them elevate their status,” Hortiz said.
The pandemic stalled Caldwell’s career as he was slated to go to Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College but suddenly was taken off of scholarship as an out-of-state student. When football resumed the following season, he enrolled at Independence (Kan.) Community College before transferring to Houston for two seasons.
With the Cougars, Caldwell flashed his pass-rushing potential with 6½ sacks in 2023 then transferred to Oregon in 2024, where he started 14 games as a run-stuffing nose tackle.
Caldwell, who is listed at 6-1, 340 pounds but wants to get closer to the 320 pounds he carried while playing at Houston, doesn’t have a position preference. He’s happy to fit anywhere in a retooled defensive line that brought in free agents Da’Shawn Hand and Naquan Jones. Hand and Jones were key additions to counter the losses of nose tackle Poona Ford and defensive end Morgan Fox in free agency.
“Just somebody that loves football,” Caldwell said. “From a juco guy — you can ask a lot of juco guys in the league as well — it’s either football or nothing for us.”
Caldwell already experienced a life without football. After his scholarship was pulled at Hutchinson during the pandemic, he was unable to afford classes without financial aid. So he stayed at home in Newberry, S.C., and helped his mother run a catering business. Waking up early in the morning, he served as her sous chef as they catered events from weddings to funerals out of their home.
He proudly reported she’ll soon open a brick-and-mortar soul food restaurant.
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