Los Angeles Chargers Eye Coen Carr as NFL Draft Buzz Grows

The Los Angeles Chargers are among roughly four NFL franchises that have inquired about Michigan State basketball standout Coen Carr, according to a report published April 3, 2026. Carr, a freakish athlete who plays for the Spartans on the hardwood, confirmed that NFL teams asked his academic advisors questions about him during visits to East Lansing to scout MSU’s football program. The disclosure adds an intriguing wrinkle to the Chargers’ pre-draft process as Los Angeles works to rebuild its receiving corps around quarterback Justin Herbert.

For a franchise that has historically valued elite athleticism at the skill positions, the Chargers’ reported interest is not surprising. The numbers reveal a pattern across NFL history: basketball-trained pass catchers often arrive with above-average catch radius, body control, and contested-catch ability that translates quickly to the professional level. Based on available data, the Bolts appear willing to explore unconventional avenues to find Herbert a reliable target in the passing game.

Los Angeles Chargers and the Antonio Gates Blueprint

The Los Angeles Chargers franchise has perhaps the most famous case study in basketball-to-football conversion anywhere in professional sports. Antonio Gates played college basketball at Eastern Michigan and Kent State, averaging 16.5 points per game during his college career, and never played a single snap of college football before becoming one of the greatest tight ends in NFL history. Gates’ path from the hardwood to the gridiron is now the gold standard for this kind of projection, and Chargers scouts clearly have not forgotten it.

That institutional memory shapes how Los Angeles evaluates cross-sport athletes. Gates finished his career with 955 receptions, 11,841 receiving yards, and 116 touchdown catches — all without a college football snap on his resume. Breaking down the advanced metrics on his early career, Gates posted elite yards-after-catch numbers and red zone efficiency figures that owed everything to his basketball instincts: hand-eye coordination, footwork in tight spaces, and the ability to high-point a ball in traffic. The Chargers’ front office brass watched all of it unfold from the inside, which makes their curiosity about Carr entirely logical.

There is, of course, a counterargument worth acknowledging. Gates was a 6-foot-4 power forward with a rare combination of size and agility that fit the tight end mold almost perfectly. Carr’s optimal NFL position — wide receiver or tight end — has not been publicly determined, and the projection from basketball to football carries real risk regardless of the athlete’s raw tools. The talent evaluation process for a player who has never lined up in a three-point stance is inherently speculative, and the Chargers would be taking a developmental flier rather than adding a plug-and-play contributor.

What Did Coen Carr Actually Reveal?

Coen Carr disclosed that approximately four NFL teams have been asking questions about him, with inquiries directed at his academic advisors rather than Carr himself or his basketball coaching staff. The contact occurred during NFL scouting trips to Michigan State, where teams were primarily evaluating Spartans football players but took the opportunity to gather information on the basketball program’s most explosive athlete.

Carr’s football background is not entirely blank. There is some gridiron experience in his past, which gives scouts at least a baseline data point beyond pure athleticism. Michigan State has a notable history of two-sport crossover experiments: Draymond Green, now a four-time NBA champion with the Golden State Warriors, participated in the Spartans’ spring football game during his college days. More recently, Tom Izzo allowed football players Keon Coleman — now with the Buffalo Bills — and Maliq Carr to join the basketball team in 2021-22, demonstrating the program’s comfort with athletic overlap. That environment may have sharpened Coen Carr’s overall feel for team-sport competition in ways that don’t show up on a standard NFL combine report.

Key Developments in the Chargers’ Carr Watch

• Carr stated “like four” NFL franchises have contacted his academic advisors, placing the Chargers among a small group of teams willing to pursue a basketball-to-football conversion project.
• NFL team representatives asked questions about Carr during official visits to East Lansing that were originally scheduled to evaluate MSU football personnel, not basketball players.
• Draymond Green’s spring football participation at Michigan State is part of a documented pattern of Spartans basketball players being tested in football settings, giving scouts a reference point for how MSU athletes handle the transition.
• Keon Coleman, who crossed over from MSU basketball to football, was drafted by the Buffalo Bills and has played in the NFL — providing a direct recent comp for a Spartan making the sport switch.
• Antonio Gates averaged 16.5 points per game across his college basketball career at Eastern Michigan and Kent State before going undrafted in the NBA and signing with the Chargers as an undrafted free agent.

How Does This Shape the Chargers’ Draft Strategy?

The Chargers’ reported interest in Carr reflects a broader draft philosophy: identify elite athletes early and develop them, rather than waiting for polished prospects who arrive with a lower ceiling. Los Angeles holds multiple picks in the 2026 NFL Draft and has the roster space to carry a developmental receiver or tight end on a rookie minimum contract without disrupting the salary cap structure. The team’s offensive coordinator will be tasked with designing a snap count that eases any converted player into the playbook gradually, protecting both the athlete and the offense’s efficiency metrics.

Justin Herbert’s target share distribution has been a recurring front-office concern. The Chargers lost key pass catchers in recent offseasons, and the depth chart at wide receiver and tight end invites creative solutions. A player with Carr’s reported athleticism — even one who needs 12 to 18 months of developmental work — could eventually earn a role in 12 personnel groupings or as a red zone specialist, much the way Gates carved out his Hall of Fame niche. The draft strategy analysis here is straightforward: low cost, high upside, and a proven organizational framework for making it work.

Whether Carr ultimately pursues football remains unclear. The numbers suggest his basketball career at Michigan State is his primary focus, and the NFL inquiries may amount to nothing more than due diligence by teams with a history of mining unconventional talent pools. Still, for a Chargers organization that built its tightest-end legacy on a basketball player from Kent State, the curiosity carries genuine weight.