COSTA MESA, Calif. — For months, the Los Angeles Chargers tried to tell anyone willing to listen: This new era, led by coach Jim Harbaugh and general manager Joe Hortiz, was going to be rooted in the line of scrimmage.
On Thursday night, in the opening round of the draft, Harbaugh and Hortiz followed through on the vision they had articulated by selecting Notre Dame tackle Joe Alt No. 5 overall.
The Chargers, who moved on from receivers Mike Williams and Keenan Allen this offseason, passed on two receivers to draft Alt. LSU’s Malik Nabers and Washington Rome Odunze were both on the board. Nabers went No. 6 to the Giants. Odunze went No. 9 to the Bears.
Harbaugh and Hortiz preferred Alt. More broadly, they preferred to invest in a position group they have described time and again as paramount to constant winning.
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“I know the question is going to come up, and you’re going to say, ‘What about a weapon?’” Harbaugh said Thursday. “Offensive linemen, we look at as weapons. That group, when we talk about attacking and we talk about attacking on offense, offensive line is the tip of the spear.”
The Chargers have not wavered in this message since the day Harbaugh was introduced as their coach at SoFi Stadium.
Harbaugh at that introductory news conference on Feb. 1, speaking on his offensive philosophy and Justin Herbert: “First of all, the quarterback that we have, protect him, protect his environment on the field. Protect him. Also beef up the run game.”
Joe Alt started 33 games during his Notre Dame career. (Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
Hortiz at his introductory news conference on Feb. 7: “We want to be strong, physical, tough. We want to develop a really good run game. You build a great run game and a great offensive line, you protect your quarterback.”
Offensive coordinator Greg Roman on Feb. 22: “We want to have an identity as an offense, and we want that to be a strong, powerful identity. That’s what we’re working on.”
Harbaugh again at the league meetings on March 25: “The offensive line, to me, is important. If I asked you the question of: What position group depends on no other position group to be good, but every other position group depends on them to be good, what position group is that? Offensive line.”
Run game coordinator and tight ends coach Andy Bischoff on April 8: “This is going to be an O-line-centric building. When it comes to our strength program, it’s built around the O-line. Everybody else fall in line. Some people don’t value offensive linemen. We do.”
Words turning into action. That is what happened Thursday night.
There were eight offensive linemen drafted in the first round. Perhaps the Chargers could have traded back, drafted a tackle and come away with additional capital, for 2024 or 2025. Hortiz said the Chargers received “a few calls” about trade-down opportunities in the lead-up to the draft and “one call” while the team was on the clock at No. 5.
“We talked through it and ultimately didn’t feel like it was worth trading back and passing on Joe,” Hortiz said.
Alt was the “best player available” on the Chargers’ board, according to Hortiz — ahead of Nabers and Odunze.
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“What separates him? He’s a tackle versus a receiver, certainly,” Hortiz said. “But there was other great players on the board, too. We felt like he was the best of the great players.”
The Chargers want to build a reliable rushing attack for Herbert, their franchise quarterback. Alt is a valuable piece in that process. He is remarkably athletic for his size — 6 feet 8 and 321 pounds — and showed his movement skills on tape, particularly in his ability to pull across the formation and execute blocks in space.
Said Harbaugh of Alt’s athleticism: “Might I say the word ‘freaky?’”
“Body control and the ability to adjust and get to your blocking space is what he offers,” Hortiz added.
As a pass protector, Alt does not play with overwhelming power. As The Athletic’s draft expert Dane Brugler wrote in his guide, Alt’s “anchor tends to be gradual and power rushers can walk him back before he settles.”
Hortiz addressed that concern.
“Everyone is going to get knocked back some on occasions,” he said. “He doesn’t get knocked back very often. When it does happen, he’s got that freakish athleticism to recover and get his knees bent and flex those ankles and get back down. So I think he does an outstanding job.”
Alt was a quarterback and tight end in high school. He did not transition to the offensive line until his freshman year at Notre Dame, although his father, John, played 13 NFL seasons at tackle for the Chiefs.
Alt turned 21 in February.
“The upside with him is tremendous,” Hortiz said.
The addition of Alt inevitably will create some moving pieces along the offensive line.
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Alt played all 38 of his games at Notre Dame at left tackle. The Chargers, of course, have former All-Pro Rashawn Slater at that position. Alt said he played some right tackle during preseason camp as a freshman in 2021, and that appears to be his path to a starting job as a rookie.
“I don’t think it will be a huge adjustment for me,” Alt said of shifting to right tackle.
Initially, both Harbaugh and Hortiz would not commit to any incumbent offensive linemen sticking at specific positions.
When asked if Alt would fit at right tackle, Harbaugh said, “Those things are to be determined. We’re counting on us playing our best five offensive linemen.”
When asked if Slater will be the team’s left tackle, Harbaugh said, “All of that is to be determined, what our best five is.”
Finally, when asked if any player is locked into a position, Harbaugh said, “Rashawn Slater, he’s locked in as the left tackle. No debate needed for that.”
Not clear why that was not said immediately. But the implication is that Slater will play left tackle and Alt will play right tackle.
Where does that leave Trey Pipkins? Pipkins started 31 games at right tackle during the past two seasons after signing a three-year extension in 2022.
“I think he’s one of our five best right now, and that’s not going to change,” Harbaugh said of Pipkins. “I’ve been extremely impressed with Trey, and he also has that kind of freaky athleticism and also building the strength and power to match that athleticism. I would predict that there’s a spot in the starting five for Trey Pipkins.”
A move to right guard could very well be in Pipkins’ future. Jamaree Salyer and Jordan McFadden are other potential starters at right guard. They both were tackles in college.
“I would play with five tackles if we could,” Harbaugh said.
The Chargers have eight picks remaining in this draft.
One of those picks should be used on a receiver, after passing on Nabers and Odunze in the first round. The Chargers only have four receivers on the roster. Joshua Palmer is the only proven player. Quentin Johnston looked overmatched as a rookie. Derius Davis has some tools but should be making his largest impact as a returner. Simi Fehoko has four career catches.
Said Harbaugh: “Let’s not bet against Quentin Johnston and Josh Palmer and DD and Simi. And there’ll be more.”
The Chargers invested in Harbaugh to lead them to places they have never been. Harbaugh has a specific way he wants to build. He has a specific way he wants to play.
He told you in February. He told you again Thursday night, with his words and his draft pick.
If it does not work, there will be plenty of time to dig into any wrong turns or shortcomings. For now, the Chargers are following their blueprint.
The one they have been revealing rather publicly.
“I have total confidence and trust that we got it right,” Harbaugh said. “And then, you got to go make it right.”
(Top photo: Sam Wasson / Getty Images)
