Pro Football Focus’ popular NFL and NFL draft podcast, NFL Stock Exchange, conducted a three round mock draft following the conclusion of the NFL combine last week. The show, hosted by Trevor Sikkema and Connor Rogers, placed former Washington Huskies star pass rusher Bralen Trice in the third round to the Los Angeles Chargers.
Over the past two seasons, Trice has been talked about as a potential first round pick, but many draft analysts saw him as a potential second rounder in last year’s draft before he decided to return to school. That stock remained relatively consistent for most of these season, even as Trice’s raw sack numbers dropped from 9 to 8 despite over 300 extra snaps in 2023.
But when Trice ran a 4.72 40 yard dash at just 245 pounds, well under his listed weight on Montlake of 274, analysts began to question if they had placed the Huskies standout too high. That’s despite his 4.72 time ranking in roughly the 83rd percentile of 40 yard dash times ran by defensive ends since 1987, per Relative Athletic Score.
The Chargers, meanwhile, are facing a crossroads at pass rusher. Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa are both owed more than $36 million this season, and one or both of them have come up in trade talks as the deadline for Los Angeles to clear over $20 million to get compliant with the salary cap looms.
LA does have 2023 second round pick Tuli Tuipulotu on the roster, however. The former USC pass rusher had a strong rookie season and is viewed as a potential franchise cornerstone on defense if he can continue that momentum into his second NFL campaign.
That leads us to Trice, who would likely be EDGE3 as a rookie behind one of Mack and Bosa, as well as Tuipulotu. Regardless of which veteran the Chargers elect to keep heading into 2024, that player will likely not be on the roster in 2025 as Los Angeles continues to remake their squad. Trice would then be able to step in as the primary edge defender opposite Tuipulotu, ideally giving the Chargers one of the better young pass rush duos in the league.
Trice also meshes well with the Chargers defense as a stout run defender who can also wreak havoc on passing downs. Los Angeles has struggled to defend the perimeter run over the past few seasons, even as they’ve remodeled the defense with splash free agent signings on the defensive interior and at linebacker.
The Chargers coaching staff is also familiar with Trice in a roundabout way. Los Angeles hired Jim Harbaugh and defensive coordinator Jesse Minter away from Michigan after the Wolverines beat Washington for the national championship in January.
Trice had only one pressure in that game, tied for his worst showing of the season. But that very well could have been because of Michigan’s focus on him after he generated 79 total pressures over the course of the rest of the season, per PFF.
With Washington’s pro day on March 28th expected to draw staff members from all 32 NFL teams, it’s worth monitoring whether the Chargers will send a high-ranking member of the coaching staff to get a closer look at Trice as a potential addition to a defensive line in flux.
You can watch the rest of NFL Stock Exchange’s three round mock draft here to see where the other Huskies in this year’s class land: