2024 NFL Draft: Who did the Rams, Chargers pick?

The 2024 NFL Draft wrapped up on Saturday, meaning that college football’s brightest stars now have one of 32 new homes.

Of course, this includes the Los Angeles Rams and Chargers, who selected 19 players between them; the Rams had ten picks, the Chargers had nine.

The Rams stacked up on defense, especially beefing up the defensive line in the wake of Aaron Donald’s retirement, but they also addressed some key offensive needs.

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Their first pick – the 19^th overall in this year’s draft – was edge rusher Jared Verse from Florida State. A standout defensive end for the Seminoles over four seasons, Verse received first-team All-ACC honors during his senior year, leading the team with nine sacks and starting all 13 games.

The Rams’ very next pick was also defensive lineman from Florida State: Braden Fiske. The Indiana native played for five seasons at Western Michigan University before transferring to FSU for his last collegiate season, where he earned second-team All-ACC honors.

In the third round, the Rams selected Michigan running back Blake Corum, who fell further in the draft than most analysts expected. The driving force behind Michigan’s 2023-2024 title-winning team and the school’s all-time leader in rushing touchdowns, Corum was the Big Ten Running Back of the Year, earned first-team All-Big Ten honors and was voted by his teammates as Michigan’s Offensive Player of the Year for the 2023 season.

The full list of Rams draftees can be found below:

As for the Chargers, NFL analysts suggested they had several areas to improve, including at wide receiver and defensive back; the team took two corners and three receivers in addition to one of the best offensive linemen in this year’s draft class: Notre Dame tackle Joe Alt.

Alt, who was selected fifth overall, was a finalist for the 2023 Outland Trophy, which honors the nation’s top interior offensive and defensive linemen, and also received first-team Associated Press All-American honors last season. Alt’s father John was a first-round pick by the Kansas City Chiefs in 1984 and earned two Pro Bowl selections as an offensive lineman; in addition, his brother is former Los Angeles Kings defenseman Mark Alt.

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One of the top receivers of this year’s class is now a Charger as well; Ladd McConkey, who won two national championships with the Georgia Bulldogs, was selected in the second round with a pick acquired from the New England Patriots. A leader on and off the field, McConkey won the 2023 Wuerffel Trophy for community service and finished as a finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy, also known as the “Academic Heisman.”

Michigan linebacker Junior Colson was selected with the Chargers’ third round pick; he reunites with his college coach Jim Harbaugh, who took the job as Chargers head coach after winning the national title. Colson, who spent the first nine years of his life in Haiti and was adopted by the Colson family in 2012, led the Wolverines with 95 tackles and earned second-team All-Big Ten Conference honors last season.

The full list of Chargers draftees can be found below:

After a rocky start to the 2023 season, the Rams turned things around and finished 10-7, although their playoff hopes were cut short when they lost in the Wild Card round to Detroit 24-23.

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The Chargers fared worse in 2023, firing head coach Brandon Staley midway through the season and eventually finishing 4th in the AFC West with a 5-12 record.

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