Akeem Dent

Projecting the Chargers’ safety depth chart in 2024

Taking a crack at projecting what the Los Angeles Chargers safety room will look like entering the 2024 season.

With training camp nearing, I finish breaking down the depth chart for each Chargers position with the safety group.

Interior defensive line

Linebacker

Cornerback

Derwin James

James finished the 2023 season with 125 tackles, seven passes defensed, two sacks and one interception across 16 games. He made his most appearances since his 2018 rookie campaign, but he wasn’t quite the same playmaker as he had in seasons prior when he earned back-to-back Pro Bowl nods. Despite the down year, James is still a dynamic player who can cover, play the run and blitz. Rather than moving him all over the field, Jesse Minter plans to put him in positions where he can best utilize his skills to get him back on track.

Alohi Gilman

The Chargers brought back Gilman this offseason after proving his worth in his first season as a full-time starter. He amassed career-high numbers in tackles (73), interceptions (2), and forced fumbles (3). With Gilman sticking around, he will play a key role alongside James.

Tony Jefferson

After retiring following the 2022 season, Jefferson returned to the NFL. After trying out at mandatory minicamp, he landed a contract with the Chargers. Jefferson has a decade of experience in the league, playing for four different teams. For his career, Jefferson has 492 tackles, eight forced fumbles, four interceptions, and 24 passes defended in 113 games (67 starts). He has the versatility to play in the box, as a deep safety and in the slot.

Dent is the only undrafted free agent I have making the 53-man roster. Dent is an experienced player, appearing in 54 games (40 starts) for the Florida State Seminoles. He is versatile, as he has seen playing time at cornerback, safety and nickel. His athleticism, explosiveness, and physicality would also serve well on special teams. Across four seasons in college, Dent totaled 187 tackles, 16 passes defended, five tackles for loss, one sack, two forced fumbles and an interception.

Where Chargers’ 2024 undrafted free agent class ranks among rest of NFL

Fantasy Pros’ Thor Nystrom isn’t too high on the Chargers’ undrafted free agent class.

The NFL draft is behind us, and most of the talk has been primarily about the nine selections made by general manager Joe Hortiz, while the undrafted free agents that he signed have been swept under the rug a little bit.

The Chargers inked 20 undrafted free agents to a contract after the draft. So how does the haul stack up to the rest of the league?

Fantasy Pros’ Thor Nystrom ranked Los Angeles’ UDFA class, reviewed some of the signees, and then showed how all 32 organizations’ signings compared to one another.

L.A. ranked No. 31, second-worst out of all the teams in the league.

Here is what Nystrom said:

Following a strong draft, the Chargers had a sleepy UDFA process.

HC Jim Harbaugh reunited with Michigan iOL Karsen Barnhart. For the Wolverines, Barnhart got plenty of experience at both guard and tackle. In 2022, he was the starting RT. But for last year’s title team, he was a full-timer with 831, but he ended up making 186 snaps at LT and 194 at RG, with the rest coming at RT. I projected him as an OG, but Barnhart chips in added value as a break-glass-in-case of emergency OT.

FSU S Akeem Dent, at No. 353, was the highest-ranked prospect signed off my pre-draft board. Dent continues the Chargers’ Florida State West bent in the secondary – he’s joining up with former Seminole stars Derwin James and Asante Samuel Jr. If Dent is to make the Week 1 roster, it’s probably through special team work.

TE Zach Heins might be the more intriguing prospect to keep an eye on. Harbaugh and OC Greg Roman load up on tight ends in their 12-personnel, power-run system. Heins is one strong summer away from an NFL job – the opportunity is there.

Despite believing that the Chargers had a solid haul in the draft, Nystrom wasn’t too fond of their undrafted free-agent signings. One of the players he highlighted was safety Akeem Dent, who Bleacher Report’s Ryan Fowler believes could make the 53-man roster.

Los Angeles has had some success finding diamond-in-the-rough players in the past, so here’s to hoping that trend continues.

Which Chargers UDFA is most likely to make the 53-man roster?

Bleacher Report’s Ryan Fowler predicts which undrafted free agent will make the Chargers’ 53-man roster.

The Chargers signed 20 free agents after the draft, one of which was former Florida State safety Akeem Dent.

Bleacher Report’s Ryan Fowler listed every team’s undrafted free agent most likely to make the 53-man roster, and he believes Dent has the best chance.

Here is what Fowler had to say:

The Los Angeles Chargers have always prioritized versatility. Florida State safety Akeem Dent fits that script to a T.

Dent has experience playing at all three levels with varying assignments, and he operates with the physicality and playmaking ability that defensive coordinators covet.

Dent amassed 16 pass breakups during his five-year tenure at Florida State, and he recorded more than 300 snaps in the box, at nickel, outside corner and free safety. That type of versatility often paves the way not only for an NFL roster spot, but actual snaps.

The Chargers addressed multiple positions in free agency and the draft with the exception of the safety group. They did re-sign Alohi Gilman to a two-year deal, but the depth is lacking.

Dent is an experienced player, having appeared in 54 games (40 starts). He is versatile, as he has seen playing time at cornerback, safety and nickel. His explosiveness and physicality would serve well on special teams, too.

Across four seasons, Dent totaled 187 tackles, 16 passes defended, five tackles for loss, one sack, two forced fumbles and an interception.

Packers to host Florida State S Akeem Dent on top-30 pre-draft visit

The Green Bay Packers are hosting Florida State safety Akeem Dent on an official visit ahead of the 2024 NFL draft.

The Green Bay Packers are hosting Florida State safety Akeem Dent on an official visit ahead of the 2024 NFL draft, according to Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Teams are allowed to host up to 30 prospects on visits ahead of the draft. Packers Wire is tracking all the reported visits here.

Dent, a five-star recruit out of high school, produced 185 tackles, 4.0 tackles for loss, 18 pass breakups, two forced fumbles and one interception over 54 games, 40 starts and five total seasons at Florida State.

Dent played all over the Florida State secondary. According to Pro Football Focus, he saw snaps at perimeter cornerback (303), in the slot (328), in the box (579) and as a deep safety (1,084). He also played over 300 career special teams snaps.

While not invited to the combine, Dent (5-11, 203) ran the 40-yard dash in 4.45 seconds, hit 33.5″ in the vertical, covered 10-4 in the broad jump, finished the short shuttle in 4.45 seconds and the three-cone drill in 6.78 seconds and completed 16 reps on the bench press at Florida State’s pro day. His Relative Athletic Score is 8.65 out of 10.0.

Dent is a likely Late Day 3 or undrafted free agent type. The Packers have 11 draft picks and a roster that needs more depth at cornerback and safety.

Who are the best players on LSU’s schedule in 2022?

These players are sure to give LSU some trouble this fall.

When we talk about schedule difficulty, we usually talk about the opposing teams as a whole.

One element that can fly under the radar is the individual players that LSU will have to face this fall. Not all of these guys are on good teams, but they’re stars in their own right.

Some players are so good that they can carry their team to victory on any given day. These are the guys that coaches spend hours focusing on in the film room in hopes of coming up with a game plan that can contain them.

Remember what Mississippi State’s Jeffery Simmons did to LSU in 2017? Dak Prescott’s performance in 2014 is another one, or even Arkansas wide receiver Cobi Hamilton’s entire career.

For the purposes of this article, I am not going to include Bryce Young or Will Anderson, the two Alabama stars that have a chance to be the top two picks in next year’s draft. To most, they are no secret and the clear-cut best players LSU will face in 2022.

From hard-hitting safeties to dynamic quarterbacks, LSU’s schedule is full of other guys that could give [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] and the Tigers some fits.

This list will be in the order of LSU’s schedule, starting with a Florida State defensive back.