Chargers benefit in mock draft while Raiders' trade up creates chaos

The Chargers land a coveted prospect, but the Raiders grab one of the best players in the class.

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The NFL Draft is two weeks away and the Los Angeles Chargers are preparing to potentially take a major offensive weapon. They found two cornerstones within their first two picks last year, in Joe Alt and Ladd McConkey. The objective this year is to find a runningmate for McConkey, who became the Chargers' leader in receiving yards for a rookie.

Rhett Lewis of NFL.com released his recent mock draft, with the Chargers selecting Michigan tight end Colston Loveland, who has been heavily linked to the Bolts all offseason given the connection to Jim Harbaugh. "The Jim Harbaugh/Michigan connection is obvious, but tight end is a need regardless -- and Loveland is well worth the pick at No. 22."

Lewis isn't wrong, as Loveland would be a homerun pick for the Chargers. Loveland had 582 yards and five touchdowns for the Wolverines last year, while spending the previous two seasons playing under Harbaugh from 2022-23.

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As for the rival Las Vegas Raiders, Lewis had them making a massive trade up with the Cleveland Browns to select Colorado's Travis Hunter at No.2 overall.

"I’ve never made a mock trade before this one, but we’ve never seen a player like Hunter, who registers as the draft's top prospect at both receiverand cornerback. It just so happens that those two positions are two of the Raiders’ biggest needs, so they aggressively move up to secure a two-for-one with this pick."

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Hunter, the Heisman trophy winner, is regarded as a freak athlete that excelled at both wide receiver and cornerback. Will he be able to play both in the NFL? It's shaping up to be that way. The Raiders would be adding an elite talent in this scenario, one that would pose fits for the rest of the AFC West for years to come.

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