Painful Chargers draft mistake is still being dissected 4 years later

A decade of Tom Telesco as the general manager yielded many disappointing draft classes for the LA Chargers. While there are some positive standouts, the list of mistakes the Chargers made is much longer than the list of home-run picks.

A mistake doesn't even need to yield a complete draft bust. Instead, more often than not, the Chargers simply failed to maximize a selection and take the best player available. Hindsight is always 20/20 but some mistakes were obvious before an NFL snap was ever played.

Some would argue that the team's Joshua Palmer pick in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft fits that description. Palmer had a serviceable four-year tenure with the Chargers but he is not even in the same ballpark as some of the wideouts that were taken behind him.

Damian Parson of Bleacher Report took a retrospective look at the 2021 draft class four years later to pinpoint the best steals of the seven-round affair. Unfortunately, for Chargers fans, two wideouts who were taken shortly after Palmer made the list: Amon-Ra St. Brown and Nico Collins.

Chargers' Joshua Palmer mistake still stings four years later

Again, it's not that Palmer was a draft bust, as he did have productive moments with the Chargers during his four-year tenure. But he certainly is not on the same level as St. Brown and Collins. St. Brown is one of the best wideouts in the entire sport, while Collins is a slight step below.

The Palmer selection was a bit of a surprise at the time. He wasn't the biggest name in the 2021 draft class and wasn't someone who Chargers fans were locked in on before the draft.

What makes this mistake worse is the fact the Chargers took another pass-catcher in the third round as well. The team's last selection before St. Brown was taken was tight end Tre' McKitty. McKitty is no longer with the Chargers and may be on his way out of the NFL after being released by the Cleveland Browns.

It's unclear where exactly the Chargers would be if the team took Collins or St. Brown instead of Palmer and McKitty. With an elite quarterback in Justin Herbert, the two receivers may have been even better in Los Angeles.

That would have had a ripple effect on the Chargers that would still be felt to this day. Instead, the two players the Chargers took in the third round are either out of the league or on a different AFC contender.