A framed photo hangs in the office of John Spanos, the Chargers’ president of football operations. He and LaDainian Tomlinson are standing side by side in 2001, shortly after a college-aged Spanos presented the running back his jersey for the first time at Radio City Music Hall.

The team traded down for that pick.

Not far from his office, just down the hall, a larger photo hangs in a second-floor corridor at Chargers Park. Philip Rivers is holding a No. 17 jersey in San Diego beside the rest of the team’s first-day draft picks in 2004.

The team traded for him.

A look back Draft-day trades under Tom Telesco: • 2015: Traded 2015 1st (17th overall) and 4th (117), and a 2016 5th (142) to San Francisco for 2015 1st (15, Melvin Gordon ) • 2014: Traded 2014 2nd (57) and 4th (125) to Miami for 2014 2nd (50, Jerry Attaochu) • 2013: Traded 2013 2nd (45) and 4th (110) to Arizona for 2013 2nd (38, Manti Te’o) Four trades since 2000 involving Chargers' first-round pick: • 2010: Traded 2010 1st (28), 2nd (40 from Seattle), 4th (126) and LB Tim Dobbins to Miami for 2010 1st (12, Ryan Mathews ), 4th (110, Darrell Stuckey ) and 6th (173, later traded) • 2004: Traded QB Eli Manning (No. 1 overall pick) to NY Giants for QB Philip Rivers (No. 4 overall), 2004 3rd (65, Nate Kaeding ), 2005 1st (12, Shawne Merriman ) and 5th (144, later traded for T Roman Oben) • 2003: Traded 2003 1st (15) to Philadelphia for 2003 1st (30, Sammy Davis) and 2nd (62, Terrance Kiel). • 2001: Traded 2001 1st (1) to Atlanta for 2001 1st (5, LaDainian Tomlinson) and 3rd (67, Tay Cody), 2002 2nd (48, Reche Caldwell) and WR Tim Dwight.

The Chargers own the No. 3 pick Thursday, their highest since being assigned the top selection in 2001 and 2004. Both drafts were defined by a first-round trade. This one, for now, appears that it won’t be. But a deal at some point during the three-day, seven-round proceeding would be consistent with the recent track record.

This draft is Tom Telesco’s fourth as general manager.

He completed a trade in his first three, each of them coincidentally featuring an early move up that left him without a fourth-round pick that year. Tight end Ladarius Green in 2012 was the Chargers’ last fourth-round choice.

Their recent trades were to select second-round linebacker Manti Te’o in 2013, second-round linebacker Jerry Attaochu in 2014 and first-round running back Melvin Gordon in 2015.

“It’s a bit of a running joke (around the office) that no one knows what it’s like to exercise a fourth-round pick in our building since I got here,” Telesco said. “You certainly don’t go into a draft saying, ‘We’re going to move this four for something.’ Usually, it’s a pretty good pick to exercise. When you’re in the draft and you’re moving, you’ve got to make quick but prudent decisions in what you do.

“The last couple years, it’s worked out where we’ve traded the fourth-round pick, but I’m hoping to hold onto it this year. Maybe acquire another fourth-rounder would be nice.”

There are two forms of draft-pick trade discussion that occurs between teams, Telesco said. One is a negotiation before the draft, and the other is a negotiation during.

The two go very differently.

Mid-draft trade dialogue is very quick and direct. A team is either on the clock or about to be. Time is of the essence. And so, Telesco will be prepared. If he’s looking to move up, the targeted compensation is already mapped out in front of him before he places the call.

The Chargers have a system that designates what constitutes fair trade compensation. They keep that proprietary, Telesco said.

Trade discussions in the days and weeks before a draft can be much more elongated and painful. The team had its share of interest in the No. 3 pick before Philadelphia moved up to the second selection this month.

“It’s almost like you’re trying to buy a car,” Telesco said. “Give me a number. No, you give me a number. No, you give me a number. No, you give me a number. So, it’s a lot of discussion until you get to, ‘What are you willing to give? What are you looking to give out?’ During the draft, it’s different because you’ve got to move. There’s no time to be messing around on the phone.”

Bill Polian, a former longtime Colts executive and current ESPN analyst, agreed with Telesco’s distinction between the draft-trade varieties.

Maybe the most visible depiction of them occurred in the movie “Draft Day.” Kevin Costner’s character wheels and deals like, well, a car salesman. The Browns general manager is on the phone with a Seahawks executive at the start of the movie, the latter devouring syrup-draped pancakes and sticks of bacon while on the phone.

Their trade discourse becomes discernibly heated later in the film.

“The only thing that was correct about that movie is that you eat a lot of bad food during the draft,” said Polian, a 2015 inductee into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. “The misrepresentation there was that there was conflict between people making trades and cajoling and yelling. That doesn’t happen at all. It’s very quiet. It’s very collegial.

“If you don’t want to make a trade, you call the person back and say, ‘Listen, we’re going to stay where we are right now. We think we’ve got a guy we want to pick. Thanks for asking, and good luck the rest of the way.’ That’s the way the conversation goes.”

And so it will go again for Telesco.

Maybe he’ll broker a deal or two. Maybe he won’t. But each year, the NFL draft and trading go hand in hand. The Chargers have pictures on their walls to prove it.

michael.gehlken@sduniontribune.com

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