COSTA MESA, Calif. — Chargers general manager Tom Telesco held his annual pre-draft news conference Monday at the team facility. The first round begins Thursday night, and the Chargers are slated to pick 21st.

Telesco is typically (and understandably) tight-lipped, vague and brief at this meeting with the media every year, and 2023 was no different. No sense in giving away any meaningful intel as front offices across the league try to project how the first round will shake out. Still, there were a couple of interesting nuggets to delve into, along with some news items on other areas of the roster.

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Here are my takeaways.

Dane Brugler’s The Beast, the complete 2023 NFL Draft Guide, is now available. 

The current makeup of the Chargers’ roster gives Telesco and coach Brandon Staley options heading into Thursday night. Unlike the first two years under Staley, the Chargers do not have to acquire a starter at a specific position in the first round. In 2021, the Chargers needed a starting tackle and a starting cornerback. They found both of those players by taking Rashawn Slater in the first round and Asante Samuel Jr. in the second. In 2022, the Chargers needed a starter on the offensive line, and they found that player in guard Zion Johnson.

This year, the Chargers could use more talent at every position except for quarterback, offensive tackle and offensive guard. But they do not have to focus on any one or two positions to fill a vacant starting spot on offense or defense.

I asked Telesco about his overall philosophy on first-round picks. Is he ideally looking for a starter at 21? Or is he comfortable drafting a player there who might only carve out a rotational role in 2023?

“If he’s coming in and just has to earn a role and doesn’t have to take on a starting role immediately, that’s fine. It means you have a pretty strong football team,” Telesco said. “You’d like to construct it where going into the draft you feel like you’re solid across the positions where you don’t have to go reach — not reach for somebody, but really feel forced to take to a certain position. I feel like that’s where we are right now.”

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I think this is a fair characterization of where the Chargers stand. They need considerably more depth across numerous positions to build a Super Bowl-caliber roster. But the (more or less) established starting units on both sides of the ball will afford them significant flexibility.

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“You can kind of let the draft come to you,” as Telesco put it.

If a defensive back they like falls to 21, they can draft that player — an outside corner to provide insurance and depth while J.C. Jackson continues his rehab, a slot defender to compete with Ja’Sir Taylor for that starting job, a safety to compete with Alohi Gilman and JT Woods for the starting spot alongside Derwin James Jr., or a combination of those skill sets. If an edge rusher they like falls to 21, they can go in that direction, too, as they need talent behind Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack. They could take a tight end, receiver or running back to give new offensive coordinator Kellen Moore and Justin Herbert another weapon.

“There really aren’t that many spots that we couldn’t use a player at, other than maybe quarterback and left tackle right now,” Telesco said. “So we’ll kind of see how it plays out. But I feel like our roster is at a point where we’re not forced to go one direction or another.”

This opens the door to a whole laundry list of possibilities in the first round. And I think it is an indication of a healthy top of the roster. The lower half of the roster is where the most work needs to be done over the weekend.

Follow all of The Athletic’s NFL Draft 2023 coverage. 

The topic of running back is a particularly interesting one. Lead back Ekeler has been granted permission to seek a trade partner as he enters the final year of his deal. Ekeler is looking for a sizable long-term extension, and he and the Chargers were far apart in their negotiations. Telesco said Monday that he had “no update” on Ekeler and did not answer a question asking if he received any interest from teams on a possible trade.

The Chargers are hopeful Ekeler will be back with the team this season, but there is some uncertainty baked into this situation. Running backs did not fare well on the open market this offseason, and that was bad news for Ekeler, who is looking for an opposing organization to meet the Chargers’ compensation demands and offer him a top-of-the-market extension. At the same time, it only takes one running back injury on one team to change the landscape.

Telesco, though, said he does not think Ekeler’s situation will inform the Chargers’ draft approach at running back. He said the existing room of Joshua Kelley, Isaiah Spiller and Larry Rountree III is “pretty good.”

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“Isaiah kind of fits in that category of kind of players from previous drafts having to step up and fill needs,” Telesco said. “Typically, like in this year’s draft, not a lot of these guys are going to come in and fill the need. I know when you look at the draft, you draft players in the third, fourth, fifth, sixth rounds and people think they are going to come in and immediately fill a need. You hope they come in and earn a role. But you’re really looking for players from previous draft classes to rise up.”

I do not agree with this assessment. If the Chargers are confident Ekeler will be back, then the current room behind him is solid. I remain high on Kelley. Spiller is still a very young player and a full year as a professional should lead to a jump if he can stay healthy. Rountree is a non-factor to me.

But if the Chargers are worried that Ekeler will not be with a team, I think they have to address running back at some point, probably in the first four rounds. Entering a make-or-break season with Kelley, Spiller and Rountree as the running back group would be questionable, especially considering Staley’s determination to improve the running game. The Chargers’ approach at running back has to be heavily influenced by the Ekeler situation and how likely they believe a resolution is. I think that is going to be the approach, even if Telesco is not saying it publicly. If the Chargers do not take a running back, that should indicate confidence in Ekeler returning for 2023.

Telesco was asked to characterize the top of this draft and how deep he feels the prospect pool is through Day 2.

After his usual answer about how the draft process is highly “subjective” — one of his favorite buzzwords this time of year — Telesco did pinpoint one deep position group.

“The only one that really kind of stands out, just because in previous years we’ve seen less and less college tight ends coming into the NFL, and for whatever reason this year there’s a whole bunch of really true tight ends that are coming into the league,” Telesco said. “Hopefully that continues because that pool has been getting smaller and smaller.”

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This aligns with the scouting from The Athletic’s draft expert Dane Brugler, who has eight tight ends in his top 100 prospects, including four in the top 30. Last year, by comparison, Brugler only had five tight ends in his top 100, and his highest-rated tight end was Trey McBride at 62nd.

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I would be shocked if the Chargers do not address tight end at some point in the first two days of the draft. When exactly they take the tight end will be fascinating, and they certainly have options because of the depth Telesco alluded to. They could take a tight end at 21, like Notre Dame’s Michael Mayer or Utah’s Dalton Kincaid. They could trade back from 21 and target a tight end in the late first, perhaps Oregon State’s Luke Musgrave or Georgia’s Darnell Washington. They could take South Dakota State’s Tucker Kraft or Iowa’s Sam LaPorta in the second round. And there could even be intriguing options in the third round, like Michigan’s Luke Schoonmaker.

This is an exceptional tight end class, and the Chargers should benefit at some point in the first three rounds.

• Telesco also had “no updates” on Herbert’s ongoing contract extension negotiations. “We won’t do like a play-by-play or characterize where things are,” Telesco said. “The next big update will be if there’s ever a contract signing. I really can’t imagine ever being up here and giving you a ‘where we are, when we talked.’ It’s probably not the way it’s going to work.”

• Jackson, who tore his patellar tendon in Week 7 of last season, is making progress in his rehab, according to Telesco. We saw Jackson working off to the side with a trainer on the first day of the offseason program last week, and he has started running on the treadmill. Telesco said “the hope” is that Jackson will be able to participate in training camp. “Optimistic on that,” he added.

• Defensive linemen Otito Ogbonnia and Austin Johnson are still rehabbing their respective knee injuries from last season, according to Telesco. “They’re not workout mode yet,” he said.

• Returner is one vacant position I fully expect the Chargers to address in the draft after DeAndre Carter signed with the Raiders last month. The free-agent possibilities do not really move the needle. “Probably have to look at it in a couple different areas and have some people come in and compete for that job,” Telesco said.

• Telesco said he expects to enter training camp with three or possibly four quarterbacks. The Chargers only have two on the roster right now — Herbert and backup Easton Stick. A Day 3 quarterback pick — maybe TCU’s Max Duggan or UCLA’s Dorian Thompson-Robinson — could be on the table.

(Top photo of Isaiah Spiller: Brian Rothmuller / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)