Tag: 2022 Draft prospects

Mock Draft Monday: Chargers fortify defense with athletic DL, high-motor CB

The Chargers bolster the defense in our latest three-round projections.

With only one week remaining in the NFL regular season, the teams eliminated from the playoffs will soon begin to scout the upcoming college football prospects in preparation for the 2022 NFL draft.

The Chargers are still thick in the hunt for a Wild Card spot and a win over the Raiders in Week 18 would guarantee an appearance in the postseason. No matter what happens in determining which teams make it in, it is never too early to start thinking about what rookies can make a difference for the team.

Los Angeles projects to upgrade their defense considerably in the offseason. The unit ranks 22nd overall with 361 total yards allowed per game. While the pass defense has been solid (12th in the league, 224.3 yards allowed per game), the run defense is in great need of support.

In 2021, the Chargers are giving up 136.7 yards per game on the ground, which puts them among the bottom three teams.

Based on those numbers, this three-round mock draft addresses some of the glaring needs on the defensive side of the ball.

Round 1 – EDGE Travon Walker, Georgia

It will be tough for the Chargers to pass up on many of the top wide receivers expected to still be on the board in the back half of the first round, but Walker is certainly no chump. Walker is a former five-star recruit that stayed home to play for the Bulldogs, where he shined in his first season as a Freshman All-SEC Team member. Defenses paid attention to him more as a sophomore, resulting in a down year, but 2021 saw him rack up 32 tackles (5.5 for loss), five sacks, and 25 quarterback hurries.

Walker possesses outstanding size and length, which he pairs with excellent mobility to out-maneuver linemen and zoom into gaps. His hands are powerful and he bashes opponents with vigor, knocking them off-balance and creating situations to hunt down the quarterback. He gets off the line at a breakneck speed and his light feet carry him throughout the rep.

No play better illustrates the power of Walker than this tackle for loss on Michigan running back Hassan Haskins in the Sugar Bowl. Walker slides low and primed for explosion as the center pulls to the edge to block him before surges upward into the defender’s chest. Walker bench-presses the reeling center back with one arm while the other snares Haskins attempting to breach the A-gap. Haskins is forced to abandon the lane and is swallowed up shortly after by the Georgia line.

Walker was a chess piece on Georgia’s front and proved he could generate production from every position. He can clean up his hand placement and creativity in his pass rush moves, but this is a player brimming with the intensity that can make an instant impact opposite Joey Bosa.

Round 2 – CB Trent McDuffie, Washington

For a second straight year, the Chargers spend early on a cornerback. McDuffie developed a reputation as a lights-out coverage man over his three seasons at Washington. He accumulated 94 tackles, two interceptions, eight pass breakups, and three forced fumbles who started all but three games over his collegiate career.

A twitchy, athletic player that takes no plays off, McDuffie has a seemingly unlimited battery that floods energy and explosion into every facet of his game. His footwork is clean and methodical, he keeps receivers on a leash, and he’s a willing tackler that can be an asset in the run game and off the edge. While a bit undersized for the position at 5-foot-11, McDuffie possesses the aggression and fearless mentality required for success at the boundary. 

That high-motor effort was on display when Washington played Oregon State. The Beavers run a reverse to the left side of the field and McDuffie’s assignment at the line ended up being the ball carrier. McDuffie saw the play develop, avoided the downhill traffic caused by the line, then activated his burners to chase down the receiver. What resulted was a brilliant display of closing speed that prevented a huge gain that would have set up Oregon State in the red zone.

Garnering recognition and praise as a first-round talent at the position, the Chargers would be lucky to land McDuffie here.

Round 3 – IDL Matthew Butler, Tennessee

There have been many leaky holes upfront for opposing running backs to take advantage of. The Chargers need a consistent big body on the line and they can find one in the third round in Butler. A “super” senior that exercised his fifth year of eligibility, Butler reaped the rewards of returning to school with a career-high season in tackles (47), tackles for loss (8.5), and sacks (5.0). 

Butler is quick and fierce off the line, using his speed to stun offensive linemen on bull rushes. The athleticism also allows Butler to combat strikes with good leverage and enters blocks in a good position. His medium-sized build is nullified with exceptional lateral agility and can change directions briskly.

Aligned across Georgia’s left guard in this rep, Butler is the first player off the line and presses the offensive lineman backward with a forceful shove. Butler works across the lineman’s chest and swims his right arm under the guard’s elbow to rotate him out of position and free up the inside lane to the quarterback. Butler presses forward, wards off the defender with the same arm, and envelops the quarterback for the sack.

Butler’s hands are also strong and he punches well, but he needs to get more accurate and violent in that area to get the upper hand early more consistently. Still, he’s an underrated diamond in a largely underwhelming class of defensive tackles whose flaws are fixable and can be ideally ironed out at the next level.

Chris Olave could bolster Chargers’ wide receiver corps

Chris Olave makes a lot of sense for the Chargers if they decide to take a wide receiver early on in the 2022 NFL draft.

With the fifth-year option on Mike Williams’ contract expiring at the conclusion of the NFL season, the wide receiver position aims to be one of the positions the Chargers will certainly need to address in the offseason.

If Williams departs, a fairly obvious hole opens up in the offense. Even if the brass decides Williams flashed enough in his first year in Brandon Staley’s scheme, adding another weapon to Herbert’s arsenal would not hurt. Regardless of what the future will bring, it is likely the Chargers could gravitate toward a pass-catcher in the 2022 NFL draft, which boasts another strong class of prospects at the position.

Enter Chris Olave, a projected first-round pick that was one of the star components of Ohio State’s aerial attack over the last three years and an early favorite to be ranked the best wideout in the class. The former three-star recruit out of San Ysidro, Calif., caught 176 passes for 2,711 yards and 35 touchdowns over his four seasons with the Buckeyes. As a junior, he helped propel the team to its second National Championship berth while finishing as a top 10 finalist for the Biletnikoff Award. Olave also became Ohio State’s all-time leader for receiving touchdowns earlier this season as he helped punch the program’s ticket to the Rose Bowl, which he eventually chose to opt-out of in order to focus on preparations for the next stages of his career.

With four months and counting until the draft opens, would Olave be a good fit for the Chargers?

For years, viewers have awed over Keenan Allen’s nuance and savviness as a route runner to create separation and make himself available to the quarterback. Olave resembles the same creative technician that has mastered the finer points of the route running craft. He implements deception throughout his route before leaving defenders behind due to the explosion he generates as he breaks.

Olave often finds himself alone at the top of his route for easy completions and deep touchdowns. He frequently distances himself from defensive backs in man coverage and is difficult to reign in once free. He is comfortable running the entire route tree and understands how to leverage patience, tempo, and quickness to turn routine plays into large gains.

A good example of Olave’s advanced skillset in this area is this 36-yard touchdown against Maryland. Olave ran a post against a Cover 4 look and became free over the top for an effortless heave from Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud. Olave ate up ground with a straight-shot release before he cut hard on the safety’s backside, who was late helping the cornerback in coverage as he identified the location of the ball through motion in the backfield. Olave sped through the angle and quickly left both opponents trailing behind.

Olave can be a playmaker after the catch as well. While he isn’t an exotic juke artist, Olave is more than serviceable with the ball in his hands and processes the field in front of him rapidly. He is spry enough to make tacklers miss consistently and dangerous when allowed to reach his top downhill speed. He protects the football well and competes in the face of contact.

On this catch-and-run against Minnesota, Olave is able to get open on the deep out route in a Flood concept as a parallel option o a rolling Stroud. After securing the catch, Olave’s hips and eyes immediately survey the pursuing action and formulate a plan for evasion. The awareness pays off; Olave slowed up a pace and allowed the tight end to get out in front to block the rotating safety. He turned on the jets from there, slid into the lane, and burst away from any player that could have given him trouble from behind.

While Olave is coveted for his premier separation tactics, don’t underestimate his prowess at the catch point. Olave is a physical going up for contested opportunities and his excellent tracking abilities put him in a good position to come down with the reception. He can fluidly adjust and adapt to the ball in the air, flashing confident and sturdy hands in traffic as he does here in double coverage against Penn State.

In terms of weaknesses, Olave’s strengths are primarily tailored to the Z wide receiver position or slot. Most of his time was spent at those two spots and he shined in either role. He likely would not translate to an X role that demands a bigger and taller frame. While Olave challenges with the size he does possess, he has below-average play strength and can struggle to box out larger players for the ball. However, this has typically not been too much an issue because of how much space he creates.

If the Chargers make Olave an option on the day of the draft, he would likely fit in best as their speedy new slot man. Combining his route sharpness with the proven expertise of Allen and running back Austin Ekeler could undoubtedly increase the potency of the passing attack and make game-planning exhaustive for the rest of the AFC West.

Chargers in attendance to scout Notre Dame vs. Florida State

The Chargers were represented at Sunday’s showdown between Notre Dame and Florida State.

The Los Angeles Chargers were one of several teams in attendance to scout Sunday’s matchup between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Florida State Seminoles.

Here’s a look at the prospects that L.A. could very well have on their radar:

Notre Dame

S Kyle Hamilton

RB Kyren Williams

WR Kevin Austin

OL Jarrett Patterson

OL Josh Lugg

OL Cain Madden

EDGE Isaiah Foskey

Florida State

DL Robert Cooper

DL Fabien Lovett

EDGE Jermaine Johnson

TE Camren McDonald