Chargers Eyeballing Another Surprising Luxury Pick, This Time for Mike McDaniel?

A year ago, the Los Angeles Chargers surprised by using a first-round pick on a running back.

Not that Omarion Hampton wasn’t worth the pick, of course. He’s got a long, productive NFL career in front of him.

But at the time, taking Hampton felt like a luxury move after the team’s clear failure to properly rebuild the interior offensive line. That helped tank any real shot at playoff success, Justin Herbert suffered various injuries and the interior of the line is once again the biggest need left on the roster.

And yet, some early hints suggest the Chargers might be looking at a luxury pick again, anyway.

It might just have to do with Mike McDaniel, too.

Chargers meet with possible surprise NFL draft pick

Wideout wideout KC Concepcion — KC Concepcion | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

According to Ryan Fowler, the Chargers will host a 30 visit with Texas A&M wideout KC Concepcion.

Granted, a visit doesn't mean the pick is a sure thing. There’s some debate about whether the Chargers would actually tip their hand like this under Joe Hortiz.

It’s also a bit strange when considering the Chargers already have a wideout room that looks like this:

Ladd McConkey
Quentin Johnston
Keenan Allen (free agent)
Tre Harris (sophomore developmental)
KeAndre Lambert-Smith (sophomore developmental)

Allen could always be back and the Chargers didn’t invest two draft picks last offseason to merely throw them away one offseason later. Johnston isn’t a lock to stick around despite his first-round status.

Concepcion is interesting, though. He’s a 5’11” threat who had 919 yards and nine scores last year while averaging better than 15 yards per catch. His burst and separation seem like a perfect fit in a McDaniel offense.

NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein wrote this about Concepcion:

"Concepcion offers immediate burst and separation into space. He’s elusive in beating press and getting into breaks with minimum damage from handsy coverage. While he has a one-speed approach, he can snap off routes with alarming suddenness, making him extremely difficult to match at leveraged break points. He’s instinctive against zone. He’s also a nightmare for man coverage on choice routes and near the goal line. He’s quicker than fast, with more value on utility throws utilizing run after catch. Concepcion’s ability to quickly uncover should be very appealing to teams with spotty protection and a young quarterback."

Due diligence, for sure. But it’s worth wondering just how much pull McDaniel might have in crafting his offense, which could include something like a luxury pick right in Round 1 despite obvious needs elsewhere.

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