What Joe Hortiz Loudly Revealed About the Chargers During the Draft

Joe Hortiz, the Chargers GM is speculated to have said a snarky comment that speaks volumes to what he knows about the Chargers during the NFL draft.

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Now that the 2026 NFL Draft is over and the Chargers found themselves drafting a bit off-center from what many believed they would go for, it is important to see what the leaders of the process have had to say about the most recent draft cycle.

The Chargers' general manager, Joe Hortiz, is speculated to have made a few comments that are considered snarky toward the fanbase, doing so while giving them what they have been wanting.

Joe Hortiz Speculated To Have Made Backhanded Comments About the Chargers During the Draft

During Day 3 of the 2026 NFL Draft, the Los Angeles Chargers were following up their first two day's worth of selections, EDGE Akheem Mesidor and IOL Jake Slaughter. During this final day, the Bolts selected OT Travis Burke, WR Brenen Thompson, S Genesis Smith, IDL Nick Barrett, IOL Logan Taylor and finally IOL Alex Harkey.

During that final selection made by the Bolts, the decision to add Harkey was speculated to please the fanbase, even if it was not Hortiz's favorite option, based on comments he is speculated to have made in a video released by the Chargers that discussed the NFL Draft and recapped the process as a whole.

Hortiz, talking about picking Alex Harkey: “Guard…shuts the fans up” 💀 pic.twitter.com/X50TC9ncQ5

— BoltUpSD (@sdbolts99) April 30, 2026

The Harkey selection has been deemed as fine by most fans, as it is a sixth-round selection who is simply expected to compete for a roster spot and push the guys above him to be better. Harkey was a former Junior College player who worked his way up to Texas State, eventually to Oregon.

Playing offensive tackle, he is expected to transition to offensive guard and compete with the likes Branson Taylor, fellow draftee Logan Taylor and free agent signee Kayode Awosika for the final interior spot across the offensive line.

Joe Hortiz | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The process is fine, adding more depth to a room that had zero the previous season. However, with the selection seemingly done to spite Chargers fans and their loud comments regarding their want for their superstar QB to be protected, it can only feel that this selection was not taken seriously enough by the frontman of the entire Chargers roster-building process.

With other positions like TE and CB in need of extra depth, this sixth-round pick could have taken advantage of players that were still available like: Andre Fuller, VJ Payne, Dallen Bentley and Jack Endries.

Either way, Chargers fans welcome their selection of Harkey happily to their roster, in hopes that he is more than just a selection "to shut the fans up" and is a real contributor.

Sign Up For the Chargers Daily Digest - OnSI’s Free Los Angeles Chargers Newsletter