RB Turner key to Chargers' draft plan

By: MIKE SULLIVAN - Staff Writer | Saturday, April 28, 2007 1:07 AM PDT ∞

SAN DIEGO -- Will the Chargers' draft day turn out to be a real head turner? That could depend on what occurs with highly coveted Michael Turner.

The Chargers are slated to pick 30th overall, but the possibility remains that they could move up on today's first day of the NFL draft by trading Turner, their second string running back. There also is speculation the team is willing to accept a 2008 first-round pick for Turner.

So whom the team will select with its first pick -- and when that will be -- is all guesswork as the draft begins today. The Chargers also have a second-rounder and two third-round picks on the draft's first day.

"My approach is I'm looking to prepare to execute our picks as we stand," Chargers general manager A.J. Smith said at midweek before cutting off media availability until after today's first pick. "That's how the game plan goes. If things happen where people call me and we entertain moving with all these offers that come flying at you, then you go off to the right a little bit."

Buffalo (12th overall pick), Green Bay (16th) and Tennessee (19th) are among the teams that need a running back. Oklahoma's Adrian Peterson and California's Marshawn Lynch are the only backs considered first-round caliber.

If the Chargers stand pat at No. 30, most observers believe they will opt for a safety or a receiver.

Another possibility is linebacker.

Texas safety Michael Griffin could be available, and so could Tennessee receiver Robert Meachem. Penn State linebacker Paul Posluszny is expected to be gone by the time the Chargers pick but would be hard to pass up if available.

Smith was keeping most of his feelings on the draft private but did reveal his opinion of the receiver crop.

"We as an organization are very impressed with the quality of wide receivers throughout the draft that we think are good football players that we could add to our mix," Smith said. "So that's exciting. There are other positions, obviously, that we are contemplating."

Smith, assistant general manager Buddy Nix and head coach Norv Turner were finalizing the team's draft plans on Friday. This is Turner's first draft with the team, but Smith and Nix have had good success since Smith became general manager in 2003.

Last year, the Chargers landed one of the steals of the draft by nabbing Pro Bowl offensive tackle Marcus McNeill in the second round with the 50th overall selection. The previous year, Pro Bowl linebacker Shawne Merriman and defensive tackle Luis Castillo were selected in the first round and receiver Vincent Jackson was chosen in the second.

But Smith's most impressive draft-weekend performance came in 2004, the year the Chargers selected Eli Manning with the No. 1 overall pick and later traded him to the New York Giants for quarterback Philip Rivers and three draft picks.

The Chargers received the Giants' third-round pick in the 2004 draft and used it to select Pro Bowl kicker Nate Kaeding. The deal included a 2005 first-round pick, which was used to pick Merriman, and a 2005 fifth-rounder that was traded to Tampa Bay for offensive lineman Roman Oben.

In addition to Rivers and Kaeding, the 2004 draft haul included defensive end Igor Olshansky in the second round, Pro Bowl center Nick Hardwick (third), linebacker Shaun Phillips (fourth), Turner (fifth) and offensive tackle Shane Olivea (seventh).

If the group of players continues to develop and the Chargers eventually advance deep in the NFL playoffs, the 2004 draft could someday make it into the conversation of the team's all-time top drafts.

The Chargers' 1975 draft is widely considered the team's top crop. That's the draft in which the Chargers selected five defensive starters in the first three rounds, two offensive starters in the sixth and seventh rounds, and a valuable contributor in the eighth.

Defensive tackle Gary "Big Hands" Johnson and cornerback Mike Williams were selected in the first round, defensive tackle Louie Kelcher and defensive end "Mean" Fred Dean were picked in the second round and hard-hitting safety Mike Fuller was picked in the third. All five players were immediate starters.

Johnson and Kelcher are members of the Chargers Hall of Fame, and Dean -- who played the second half of his career in San Francisco -- was a 2007 Pro Football Hall of Fame finalist. Williams ranks fifth in team history with 24 interceptions, and Fuller led the Chargers in interceptions twice while also producing more than 4,000 return years.

Offensively, Billy Shields was picked in the sixth round and became a fixture at right tackle. Running back Rickey Young was selected in the seventh and led the Chargers in rushing for three consecutive seasons before being traded to Minnesota for Pro Bowl guard Ed White. Eight-round pick Ralph Perretta played all the line positions and was the team's long snapper.

Those players became part of the organization at one of its lowest times -- the 1975 Chargers lost their first 11 games -- and were part of a transformation from worst to first as the Chargers won the AFC West in 1979 and then played in the AFC Championship game each of the next two seasons.

Today and Sunday, Smith will be looking to find players who, he hopes, can help the present-day Chargers approach the success of the Don Coryell-coached teams.

Smith said the team brought in 27 players for visits -- the NFL maximum is 30 -- during draft preparations. Players such as Griffin, Meachem, Posluszny, Florida safety Reggie Nelson, Utah safety Eric Weddle and Miami linebacker Jon Beason are among the projected high picks known to have visited the team.

Contact staff writer Mike Sullivan at (760) 739-6645 or msullivan@nctimes.com.