NFL draft: Will the Chargers prioritize Michigan defensive players?

Tuli Tuipulotu was a revelation last season for the Chargers, a second-round draft pick from USC who became a menacing on-field presence and added depth behind veteran outside linebackers Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack and, later, as a capable fill-in after Bosa suffered a significant injury.

Off the field, Tuipulotu was respectful, surprising his older and more accomplished teammates by calling them “sir’ or “Mr.” when addressing them in training camp. He was an attentive listener during meetings, and a quick learner, too. He played in all 17 games and had 4½ sacks and 37 solo tackles.

Is there another one or two or three like him in the 2024 NFL draft, which begins Thursday?

Bosa, Mack and veteran safeties Derwin James Jr. and Alohi Gilman represent four pillars of a Chargers defense that could use some depth via the draft, including upgrades at several positions. After all, the Chargers were 24th in the NFL in points given up and 28th in yards surrendered.

They need help on their defensive line, at inside linebacker and at cornerback. Some job openings were filled in free agency last month, when Gilman re-signed for two seasons and $11 million, for example. But there’s more work to be done, starting with the middle and late rounds of the draft.

This is the first draft since Jim Harbaugh was hired to replace Brandon Staley as coach and Joe Hortiz was hired to replace Tom Telesco as general manager. So, it stands to reason that Harbaugh and Hortiz want way more hits than misses when it comes to their first draft together, especially on defense.

“I’m the one who picks the player,” Hortiz said. “But when I tell you it’s a collaborative process, it’s a collaborative process. I put the list together based on what we do as a group. That’s scouting, that’s coaching, that’s talking to Jim and Jim’s input and his evaluation on the players. I’m the one that ranks them and I’m, ultimately, the one that calls them.”

Picks beyond the first round could prove to be especially important, with Tuipulotu as an example of finding the right player for the right position. Depth is important and, as Hortiz stressed during an interview with reporters last week, so is selecting the best available player, regardless of position.

Harbaugh spent nine seasons coaching at the University of Michigan. So, it stands to reason that his wealth of knowledge of the Wolverines players could result in a number of maize-and-blue tinted selections, starting with cornerback Mike Sainristil in Round 2.

Sainristil has been ranked among the top 40 prospects.

The Chargers have the fifth and 37th picks to start the draft.

Do the math.

Their third-round pick could be a Wolverine, too.

Defensive tackle Kris Jenkins was a member of Michigan’s undefeated national championship team last season. He had 37 tackles in 15 games, including 4½ for losses with 2½ sacks. He’s projected to go either at the end of the second round, best-case scenario, or early in the third.

“Why wouldn’t you?” Hortiz said when asked about drafting Harbaugh’s former players. “They’re national champs for a reason. They had a bunch of great players on that team. We put them through the process and we rank them, stack them and the coaches evaluate them. You have to get them in the right spot, you know? Certainly, we know the (ex-Michigan) players better than anyone.

“That’s a major advantage for us.”

T’Vondre Sweat, a defensive tackle from Texas, could be the Chargers’ fourth-round pick as they attempt to add depth on the line. Or it might be Josh Proctor, a safety from Ohio State who is well known to Harbaugh as a past Big Ten rival. Or it could be Gabriel Murphy, an outside linebacker from UCLA.

“It’s probably a multitude of things, in all honesty,” Hortiz said of the Chargers’ priorities for the final day. “There’s times where it’s, ‘Hey, let’s take this big, fast, athletic player that we’ve seen do it, but may not have the consistency.’ Or it could be a defensive lineman who just knows how to two-gap and plays hard, and plays tough. He might not have sacks, but we know exactly what he’s going to do. I think those players get ranked and stacked based on their traits versus their production.

“That’s what you have to weigh.”