Q: What shocked you most about the Chargers draft? – Ty Elias
A: Probably the fact the Bolts didn't make a draft day trade. It was part of my five lessons from this year's draft, and I still feel that way. A total of 25 trades went down during the draft, and for the first time under General Manager Tom Telesco and only the fifth time since 2000, the Chargers weren't involved. Still, that doesn't mean the Chargers weren't working the phones as the GM admitted they looked into moving back a few times:
"We were on the phone a lot. There really weren't any scenarios with going up in this draft, but we were on the phone a lot as far as potentially moving back. Sometimes they just fall through or sometimes the other team just pulls out and goes somewhere else. It's just the nature of the business, but it was a little odd to go a whole draft without a trade."
Q: I like the poll question. Which drafted player aside from Joey Bosa are you most excited for this year? – Behrus C.
A: Hunter Henry is running away with the poll on our homepage, and I'll admit I'm pretty excited to watch him as well. He didn't drop a single pass last year at Arkansas, and now has a chance to learn alongside one of the best to ever play the game in Antonio Gates. It's important to keep expectations in check for all rookies, but I'm certainly eager to see what kind of impact Henry can make as a rookie
Q: I'm going to miss Mike Scifres a lot. He was so classy. Any good Scifres stories you want to share, Ricky?- Jacob Hamlin
A: It's always tough to say goodbye to a player and person like Mike Scifres. I'll never forget minicamp a few years ago when Luke Tasker was fielding punts. It was his first time on the field with Scifres and he stood frozen as Mike boomed one way over his head with the bouncing out of bounds at the one or two yard line. Tasker's eyes grew wide as he simply went "Woah!" On a personal note, I used to hate it when Mike would knock the blanket or hat off my head on the plane rides home when I'd try to get some sleep, but now I will definitely miss it. I thought this statement from Chargers Chairman Dean Spanos spoke volumes about what Scifres meant to this organization:
"There's nothing harder than saying goodbye to someone who has been so good for so long for us. Mike has been one of the best punters in the NFL for more than a decade, but he's also been a team leader and outstanding representative for our team. He has represented the Chargers with utmost professionalism and class, and it has been a pleasure for me and my family to get to know Mike, Stacie and their growing family. He may not put on a Chargers uniform anymore, but he'll always be welcome here as a member of the Chargers family."
