2023 Official Charger Draft - Post Draft Discussion (Daily Links In OP)

[Boltjolt]

5 sacks as a LB in Staley's system is pretty good. We don't blitz like Seattle does. I thought the guy was making pretty good
progress. Not sure about $10M/yr, but he was a beast for Seattle this year.

He is a 3-4 OLB/ pass rusher there. He was a Edge here.
9.5 is decent and a career high, but beast?
He was tied for 20th is sacks with 34 year old Justin Houston ......who played 3 less games and in his prime was a beast.
34 year old Brandon Graham had 11.

I'd have signed him for 5-7 mil but 10? He is another that took time to develope to get to this point.
I don't think many expected him to have the year he had,....and good for him.
Pete Carroll is a better HC.

I was on the fence about keeping him but at 10 mil....and his projection was even higher, it was easier to say no.

[ghost]

1) TE Dalton Kincaid
2) NT Siaki Ika, DT Calijah Kancey
3) LB Noah Sewell
4) CB Julius Brents
5) OC Eli Cox
6) OT Connor Galvin
7) CB Cameron Brown

Round One Agree on Dalton Kincaid. He's in my 1st Round groupings, and only behind OT, as I view it. If a tackle falls to #21, that's the pick. Otherwise, I stay put and select Dalton Kincaid. His speed is something to get excited about.

Round Two I like Kancey but he's a two-down player....Lance Zierlein said he was, not me). Good enough for me. Ika would be the pick at DI.

[charger1_sj]

He is a 3-4 OLB/ pass rusher there. He was a Edge here.
9.5 is decent and a career high, but beast?
He was tied for 20th is sacks with 34 year old Justin Houston ......who played 3 less games and in his prime was a beast.
34 year old Brandon Graham had 11.

I'd have signed him for 5-7 mil but 10? He is another that took time to develope to get to this point.
I don't think many expected him to have the year he had,....and good for him.
Pete Carroll is a better HC.

I was on the fence about keeping him but at 10 mil....and his projection was even higher, it was easier to say no.

How many did Bosa and Mack have? 9.5 for an OLB is very good. So your saying he was mis-cast as a Charger?

10M/year sounds like a lot so I'm not so sure I would have signed him either. But if I knew moving him to OLB and getting the production
he got I'd probably do it. It cost Seattle $13 in cap space this year, but it leaves only a $4.7 dead cap in case he didn't work out for next.
Seattle had the cap space to make that move, I'd say it worked out for them.

White is a different story. Not sure why we let him walk for peanuts. He's a starter for the Eagles and will play in the SB.

[Boltnut]

Mack only had 8 sacks this season. But remember, without Joey on the other side, he was getting chipped at a pretty high rate. In the 6 games that Bosa and Mack played together they combined for 7.5 sacks... even with Bosa being less than 100% those last 3 games. Extrapolated out, that would be 21.25 sacks per game. It's not a reach to predict 10 sacks for Mack next year.

Now if we're comparing Mack vs. Nwosu in the run game... Mack plays the run better than Nwosu on the edge in a Staley scheme. Ultimately, that's why Mack was brought in vs. Nwosu being re-signed. The OLB (in a Staley system) has a lot of duties/expectations. Nwosu is a good player... he just didn't fit the Staley-system as well as Mack.

[Steve]

2 things will improve our pass rush dramatically.

1st is to have multiple guys who can actually get after the QB on the field at the same time. Mack rushing by himself was getting doubled and chipped. 2 years ago, Bosa by himself was getting doubled and chipped by himself. ... there is a pretty clear pattern. Oh, and most other teams, when you have 1 edge player who rushes the QB, that guy may get a lot of sacks, but the overall pass rush can't get after the QB consistently. We have the bodies, but we need to get them on the field at the same time.

2nd is to score more points on offense. We have a bad run D, and there is no denying it. But our offense lets teams hang around and keep playing their game. If we force teams so they know they have to score a lot of points, even if they aren't behind, they know they are going to have to take risks over the course of the game.


...by the way, sacks is a really poor way to measure pass rushing production. It is the goal, but how many times have you seen a defender absolutely crush a QB, even if they don't get a sack and the QB comfort level crashes and they don't complete passes, even if they aren't getting sacks? Sacks are a goal and are a great way to make big plays on D, but it isn't the only measure of success. Many great pass rushers (HOF types) sack totals by year are up and down. Did they suddenly stop being good pass rushers?

[charger1_sj]

Mack only had 8 sacks this season. But remember, without Joey on the other side, he was getting chipped at a pretty high rate. In the 6 games that Bosa and Mack played together they combined for 7.5 sacks... even with Bosa being less than 100% those last 3 games. Extrapolated out, that would be 21.25 sacks per game. It's not a reach to predict 10 sacks for Mack next year.

Now if we're comparing Mack vs. Nwosu in the run game... Mack plays the run better than Nwosu on the edge in a Staley scheme. Ultimately, that's why Mack was brought in vs. Nwosu being re-signed. The OLB (in a Staley system) has a lot of duties/expectations. Nwosu is a good player... he just didn't fit the Staley-system as well as Mack.

Bosa and Mack's job is to get to the QB and set the edge. They are essentially DEs. No chance they'll ever get 21.25 sacks per game, not even at their prime.
I think you mean 21.25 sacks per year, which is very doable.

An OLB duty is tackling, covering short passes and occasionally blitzing. Therefore 9.5 sacks is pretty good. It is not Houston in his prime, but pretty good. Even if I buy your analysis it means Staley was not using Nwosu wisely. Whose fault is that? You do not use a system that does not fit the personnel you have. Instead you design a system that best fits the personnel on hand. It's the same reason why Lombo failed.

[TexanBeerlover]

2 things will improve our pass rush dramatically.

1st is to have multiple guys who can actually get after the QB on the field at the same time. Mack rushing by himself was getting doubled and chipped. 2 years ago, Bosa by himself was getting doubled and chipped by himself. ... there is a pretty clear pattern. Oh, and most other teams, when you have 1 edge player who rushes the QB, that guy may get a lot of sacks, but the overall pass rush can't get after the QB consistently. We have the bodies, but we need to get them on the field at the same time.

2nd is to score more points on offense. We have a bad run D, and there is no denying it. But our offense lets teams hang around and keep playing their game. If we force teams so they know they have to score a lot of points, even if they aren't behind, they know they are going to have to take risks over the course of the game.


...by the way, sacks is a really poor way to measure pass rushing production. It is the goal, but how many times have you seen a defender absolutely crush a QB, even if they don't get a sack and the QB comfort level crashes and they don't complete passes, even if they aren't getting sacks? Sacks are a goal and are a great way to make big plays on D, but it isn't the only measure of success. Many great pass rushers (HOF types) sack totals by year are up and down. Did they suddenly stop being good pass rushers?

Agreed and poor clock management, rushing plays (trying to catch defense off guard) mostly failed (poor execution or too obvious play calling) sent a dog tired defense right back out there, spiraling out of control creating self inflicted loses.

[dmac_bolt]

They are not going to go into full rebuild mode, hoy smokes! you guys are completely overreacting to is cap stuff…

if you want to limit the impact to the roster by limiting the number of moves made and maximizing the amount of cap space gained? One particular move should be on everyone’s mind and that’s trading joey bosa, it almost clears the 20 mil in one fell swoop AND gives the chargers draft capital to use on edge and to fill other depth needs as well…it’s a really obvious move to me, he’s still a big enough name and young enough to bring the biggest return while clearing the most cap space…and very few people are even discussing it…I’ve laughed at other people for suggesting this in the past, but in light of his production on the field, I think it’s undeniable that he’s not close or has ever been close to earning that massive contract…the behavior stuff I won’t even get into, just focus on the production, it’s just not there…that’s 19 plus mil cleared from a bosa trade

after the bosa trade cutting fieler and hopkins clears another 8.5 mil in cap space and then you can extend ekeler and davis until age thirty which drops their cap numbers by 40-50% for 2023 and creates an additional 8-9 million in cap space….that’s 16 plus mil cleared with two extensions and two easy cuts…

Making these moves means all we lose is an underperforming and over priced edge and guard, and a kicker we don’t need, and we keep two valuable pieces beyond 2023 in ekeler and davis, plus we keep keenan and mack for 2023

BTW, keeping keenan and macks contract untouched in 2023 means it’s even easier to move on from them in 2024…if you do this their dead cap in 2024 would be like 16.8 but their cap savings comes in over 33mil which would more than pay for the cap hit, that’s a net gain of like 16 mil in next years cap assuming they don’t trade or do something else with those guys, who can say?

but at the very least this plan means we only lose bosa, fieler, and hopkins in 2023 and it leaves the team poised to make another solid playoff run…the added bonus is that you keep herbert happy by not getting rid of his favorite target…

in a room of only tough choices, losing bosa Feiler and Hopkins is really only losing bosa. Did you re-sign Pipkins with some of those savings or do we need a starting RT?

[Boltjolt]

Bosa and Mack's job is to get to the QB and set the edge. They are essentially DEs. No chance they'll ever get 21.25 sacks per game, not even at their prime.
I think you mean 21.25 sacks per year, which is very doable.

An OLB duty is tackling, covering short passes and occasionally blitzing. Therefore 9.5 sacks is pretty good. It is not Houston in his prime, but pretty good. Even if I buy your analysis it means Staley was not using Nwosu wisely. Whose fault is that? You do not use a system that does not fit the personnel you have. Instead you design a system that best fits the personnel on hand. It's the same reason why Lombo failed.

No it isn't They play a 3-4. They are in coverage some but a 3-4 OLB is essentially an edge rusher on passing downs.

Merriman didn't get those 17-18 sacks by blitzing.

[cmplxgal]

https://chargerswire.usatoday.com/lists/chargers-nfl-mock-draft-jalin-hyatt-will-mcdonald/

USA Today: Los Angeles Chargers three-round 2023 NFL mock draft 3.0


Gavino Borquez
February 9, 2023 1:03 pm PT

The 2023 NFL draft is still three months away, but we will supply you with in-depth coverage between now and then to inform you who the Chargers could be targeting with they’re on the clock.

With that being said, this will be the third installment of the three-round mock draft Thursday, where I will lay out different scenarios every week on how the first three rounds could play out for Los Angeles.


Round 1, No. 21, WR Jalin Hyatt, Tennessee

At his end-of-season press conference, general manager Tom Telesco said that the Chargers needed to get faster at wide receiver. And there isn’t anyone that possesses more explosive game speed in this draft than Hyatt.

Hyatt caught 67 passes for 1,267 yards and 15 touchdowns this season. He averaged 18.9 yards per catch, ranked 13th in the nation, and had 14 catches on balls thrown at least 20 yards downfield, tied for fourth.

Herbert’s 6.8 yards per attempt ranked 26th in the NFL in 2022, and Hyatt’s downfield ability would help turn that around toward the top of the league.


Round 2, No. 54, EDGE Will McDonald, Iowa State

The Chargers need more pass-rush juice behind Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack, as Kyle Van Noy will be a free agent, and 2021 fourth-round pick Chris Rumph II has not produced in his first two seasons. McDonald would instantly improve the production at pressuring opposing quarterbacks.

With an excellent first step with the hips to bend the edge and the flexibility to drop his shoulder to get under blockers, violent hands, a wicked spin move, and the arm length (35″) to long-arm blockers, McDonald is a mainstay in opposing backfields.

In 2020, McDonald finished the season tied for first in the nation in sacks with 10.5. He was even more dominant in 2021, finishing seventh with 11.5 sacks. His sack total took a dip in his final season for the Cyclones, but primarily because he was used in various roles.


Round 3, No. 85, TE Tucker Kraft, South Dakota State

With Gerald Everett only having one more year on his contract, Donald Parham’s injury concerns looming, and Tre’ McKitty’s underwhelming play, the tight end position needs to be addressed.

At 6-foot-5 and 255 pounds, Kraft has a great blend of size and strength. He has good speed, short-area quickness and ball skills. Kraft has the run-blocking ability and toughness to be a solid contributor in that department. Additionally, he has experience playing in-line, in the slot, and out wide.

Kraft had 65 receptions (the most among FCS tight ends) for 773 yards and six touchdowns as a first-team All-American in 2021. In 2022, he suffered an ankle injury that kept him sidelined for eight games. He returned to finish with 27 receptions for 348 yards and three touchdowns.

[charger1_sj]

No it isn't They play a 3-4. They are in coverage some but a 3-4 OLB is essentially an edge rusher on passing downs.

Merriman didn't get those 17-18 sacks by blitzing.

Staley does not run a traditional 3/4. We rush 4 almost 85% of the time and we really don't have a NT. The system
in which Merriman played is very different than what Staley runs. We are also in nickel way more than in those days.
We perhaps are in our base system 50-60% of the time. The personnel we had on the field this year fits a 4/3 system.
with one exception, we don't have a thumper at ILB. We lost I think at least 2 interior DL guys, which didn't help.

[Lefty2SLO]

2 things will improve our pass rush dramatically.

1st is to have multiple guys who can actually get after the QB on the field at the same time. Mack rushing by himself was getting doubled and chipped. 2 years ago, Bosa by himself was getting doubled and chipped by himself. ... there is a pretty clear pattern. Oh, and most other teams, when you have 1 edge player who rushes the QB, that guy may get a lot of sacks, but the overall pass rush can't get after the QB consistently. We have the bodies, but we need to get them on the field at the same time.

2nd is to score more points on offense. We have a bad run D, and there is no denying it. But our offense lets teams hang around and keep playing their game. If we force teams so they know they have to score a lot of points, even if they aren't behind, they know they are going to have to take risks over the course of the game.


...by the way, sacks is a really poor way to measure pass rushing production. It is the goal, but how many times have you seen a defender absolutely crush a QB, even if they don't get a sack and the QB comfort level crashes and they don't complete passes, even if they aren't getting sacks? Sacks are a goal and are a great way to make big plays on D, but it isn't the only measure of success. Many great pass rushers (HOF types) sack totals by year are up and down. Did they suddenly stop being good pass rushers?

This, x 10. Another way Lombardi's conservatism killed the team. We need to bury teams, not let them hang around. This alone, if it can be done, will improve our defense significantly by making the opposing offenses 1 dimensional. Go KM!!!!