When Oronde Gadsden II was drafted by the Los Angeles Chargers in the fifth round as the 165th overall pick in April, he was probably considered an afterthought by fans. Gadsden, however, has been one of the bigger surprises of the season.
Gadsden turned in his best performance yet as the Chargers defeated the Minnesota Vikings, 37-10, at SoFi Stadium on Thursday. He caught an eight-yard touchdown pass from Justin Herbert in the first quarter to start the scoring and set the tone for Los Angeles.
He stayed active throughout the game, as he and Herbert continued to connect on several plays. He finished with five catches for 77 receiving yards.
In the process, the 22-year-old newcomer became the first rookie tight end since Mike Ditka in 1961 to tally at least 240 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns in two games, according to ESPN's Kris Rhim.
At that time, John F. Kennedy was the president of the United States, The Beatles were just starting, “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” was the most popular film, and the Berlin Wall was being constructed.
Ditka is an absolute legend and a Hall of Famer, so it's not bad company at all for Gadsden.
The son of one-time Super Bowl champion Oronde Gadsden, he tallied seven catches for 164 yards in their loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Week 7.
He also set a Chargers record against the Vikings by becoming the first rookie tight end to log a receiving touchdown in back-to-back games since Hunter Henry in 2016.
Los Angeles improved to 5-3, while Minnesota dropped to 3-4.
