Chargers get weird in a 2006 NFL draft re-draft from Pro Football Focus

The Los Angeles Chargers just navigated the 2025 NFL draft in some interesting ways, seriously entertaining trade offers in the first round, eventually trading up later in the draft and overall making nine picks that wound up with some nice grades. 

It was, in most respects, what Chargers fans have alrtady come to expect from general manager Joe Hortiz, based on what they know about him from his time with the Baltimore Ravens and his first draft effort last year—which produced Joe Alt, Ladd McConkey, two starting corners in the fifth round and more. 

Now that the draft is over, Pro Football Focus entered a time machine and re-drafted the 2006 draft with some interesting results. 

There, the San Diego Chargers actually stick with cornerback Antonio Cromartie out of Florida State: 

“Cromartie remains the pick for the Chargers here — and he is the only unchanged pick in this redraft. While he endured an up-and-down career, earning a 68.0 career PFF coverage grade, there’s no denying his peaks were elite.”

So…pretty fitting that the Chargers are the only team to do the exact same thing all these years later, right?

Then again, it’s pretty hard to complain. Cromartie was with the Chargers from 2006-2009 and as a whole piled up four Pro Bowls and a first-team All-Pro nod. 

The 2006 Chargers draft otherwise produced notables for the team such as Marcus McNeil and…Charlie Whitehurst.