Midway through NFL season, Chargers could have found steal of 2025 NFL draft

The fifth round for the Los Angeles Chargers has seemed to be the sweet spot for General Manager Joe Hortiz. Tarheeb Still and Cam Hart last year became very strong contributors for this Chargers defense, and now with two more selections in the fifth round, could they match or exceed the expectations that were set by Still and Hart?

KeAndre Lambert-Smith has already been discussed in regards to his contributions halfway through the NFL season, but his fifth-round pass-catching counterpart, Oronde Gadsden II, has been the real attention grabber from this Chargers rookie class.

Going into the NFL draft process, Gadsden II was noted as a Wide Receiver to Tight End convert who has NFL bloodlines and the attitude of a pro. A good profile for a pass catcher who also had two 900+ yard seasons, one as a receiver, the other as a Tight End.

With an impressive resume and attitude, why did he fall all the way until the fifth round? The honest truth is that Gadsden II looked like a former receiver playing Tight End, for better or for worse. The route running and hands were obvious positives, but the blocking ability and strength to play against linebackers were a major concern for scouts.

The scouting report on Gadsden II, both positive and negative, followed him through the off-season process with the Chargers. Gadsden II was constantly making big plays in Chargers training camp, but these plays were always followed with a “but” regarding his blocking ability.

Eventually, those concerns about blocking started to disappear, as improvements were being made every single day. Gadsden II spoke about his work ethic and said, “[that] he and Syracuse-Chargers teammate UDFA Marlowe Wax still get up at 5:15 to prepare for practice.” An impressive feat for a rookie trying to make an impact before his first regular season starts.

Chargers TE Oronde Gadsden II say he and Syracuse-Chargers teammate UDFA Marlowe Wax still get up at 5:15 to prepare for practice.

Gadsden says he doesn’t bike to practice anymore-he was able to rent a car.

— Alex Insdorf (@alexinsdorf99) July 29, 2025

Going into the regular season, Gadsden II’s hard work apparently was not enough for the coaching staff. While they had reasons beyond his play up until that point, the fact is that the Syracuse pass catcher was inactive for the first two weeks of the NFL season.

Once Gadsden was active, everything seemed to change for both him and this Chargers offense.

Week 3 was Gadsden II’s first game as a pro, where he made an instant difference catching multiple passes in clutch situations, eventually earning a five-catch 46-yard debut. Unfortunately, Gadsden II’s role in the offense stalled a bit in Weeks 4 & 5, as the tight end rotation was very real, and the Chargers offense as a group faltered.

A major cog in the Chargers offensive resurgence after the multi-week lull is Gadsden II’s official arrival as a difference maker. Making that Week 3 flash more than just a flash, it was a trailer for what was to come.

Weeks 6-8, the passing attack ran through the rookie fifth-round pick, with Gadsden having 19 catches for 309 yards and two touchdowns. The Chargers play their Week 9 matchup, the Tennessee Titans, this Sunday, with a very real chance for Gadsden II to make this three-week stretch of dominance four weeks.

Oronde Gadsden is a BEAST! 💪🏼

He DESTROYS zone at 3.37 YPRR

The Titans run zone almost 80% of the time

Gadsden LAPS the field for tight ends…

but among qualifying WRs, only JSN, Rashee Rice, Puka Nacua, and Drake London have higher YPRR vs Zone 👀pic.twitter.com/m4pmHzhgOV

— Colt Williams (@_ColtWilliams) October 30, 2025

To put a small pause on the hype train, his blocking ability has not followed suit with his strong receiving performances. Gadsden II has made strides and shown flashes of ability, he has a very poor score of 33.8 in PFF’s run blocking grading system.

Among all rookie tight ends with atleast ten targets, Gadsden ranks first in PFF overall offensive grade (75.1), first in PFF receiving grade (83.1), third in PFF pass blocking grade (64.8), first in yards per route run (2.25) and first in contested catch percentage (100% on three targets).

Gadsden II has arguably been the best rookie tight end in the league. He was drafted in the fifth round and did not even play until Week 3. Halfway through the NFL season, Gadsden II has been a game-changing draft pick with no signs of slowing down.

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