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Youth Dan Fouts Jerseys ,10commentsI’m really behind this yearPDTShareTweetShareShareMatt Stanley’s Mock Draft(s)Jennifer Buchanan-USA
TODAY SportsI’ve been behind this year. Dealing with personal stuff, starting a
new job, we even thought it would be a good idea to get a new puppy a few months
ago. So it’s draft week and I’m just now getting around to doing some mock
drafts. To do my mock drafts I like to use the draft simulator over at
fanspeak.com. It is becoming more and more popular so they are able to add more
and more into it. There are a ton of draft boards from various draft sites and
experts you can use, or you can create your own. If you upgrade to “premium”
(which I highly recommend) you get the ability to do trades.It helps you get a
good sense of general areas of the draft where guys might go. Obviously nothing
is a sure fire prediction but this is better (and easier) than trying to predict
every pick for all 32 teams. Here are 3 mocks that I did with interesting
results. I tried my best to fill needs while maximizing talent and value.
Attempt 1All the top offensive tackles were gone when pick 28 rolled around. As
for defensive tackles, Dexter Lawrence was there, but I don’t like the value in
round 1, and Jeffery Simmons was there but I wasn’t a fan of the idea of
spending a 1st rounder on a guy who won’t play this year. So I went with Nasir
Adderley who, in my opinion, is the best center fielder in the draft. He fills a
huge need and pairing him with Derwin James gives the Chargers an insane duo of
Safeties. In the second round, Simmons was still on the board but I threw need
out the window for the value of Deebo Samuel at the end of the second round.
Deebo has good long speed, hes fantastic after the catch and he is the
definition of Tom Telesco’s favorite adjective “versatile.” He lines up outside,
in the slot, in the backfield. He returns kickoffs and has been a gunner on punt
coverage. He had 25 rushing attempts in college, converting 7 for TDs, and took
4 kick returns to the house for TDs. Deebo brings a ton of value to the team at
multiple positions and, as much as we like Geremy Davis, really lessens the loss
of Tyrell Williams on offense. Finally in the third, Jeffery Simmons was still
there and I couldn’t keep passing on him. Simmons has that one character red
flag, and he likely won’t play this season
Dan Fouts Jerseys Stitched , but he’s an outstanding talent. He is so good with his hands, and an athletic freak. He can play any position on the DL. In the 3rd,
he’s more than worth the risk/delay.For the day 3 picks I doubled, then tripled
down on DL with Greg Gaines in the fourth, who I think is a stud on the
interior. He’s basically an immovable object, and a good run stuffer. In the
sixth I grabbed Daniel Wise who is more of a Darius Philon replacement, an great
athlete for his size who’s better playing the 5 or 7. Round 5 I grabbed one of
my favorite LBs in the draft, David Long from WVU. He has great range, is a
good, punishing tackler, and was ultra productive over the last 2 seasons with
183 tackles, 35 TFL, 10 sacks and 10 PD. I wrapped things up with Cameron Smith
at LB in the 7th. He is one of those typical Telesco guys: Proven leader, tons
of production, he’s local. The fit was there. Attempt 2This draft fell more my
way. Jonah Williams still being there at 28 was fantastic. Williams is one of
the very few plugin starters at OT in this draft. The Chargers have a big need
for a starting caliber OT and Williams fits the bill. Darnell Savage is making a
late move up draft boards. He isn’t a prototypical FS but Tony Pauline said this
last week that teams believe he is good enough in coverage and athletic enough
to play CB in certain packages and that the Chargers appear to be very
interested in him including a private visit. Vosean Joseph in the 3rd fills a
need with a good player. I’m still not sure if I like the pick 100% but it was
the best option I had available. He has decent range on tape, hits very hard,
and had a productive Jr year for Florida all around. In the 4th I grabbed NC
State QB Ryan Finley. The Chargers have been doing lots of work on QB’s despite
signing Tyrod Taylor this off season. I don’t think they’ll take one on day 1 or
2 but it wouldnt surprise me to see one taken on day 3. Finley has good tools,
and had good accuracy numbers in college. Plus there are reports Philip Rivers
has been mentoring him this off season in the process of heading into the
NFL.Greg Gaines I talked about above, being able to take him in the 5th made him
even more attractive. In the 6th
Emeke Egbule Los Angeles Chargers Jerseys , well it’s me guys, you know I was taking a Punter somewhere during this process. Corey Fatony has a great leg and
can get off some deep punts. He was also the holder for Mizzou and can get off
some deep kickoffs. I finished with a CB, Jamel Dean. He has great size/speed
(6’1 206, ran an official 4.3 at the combine), he can jump out of the gym, and
shows good feel for coverage. The reason he’s a day 3 guy is that he’s only a 1
year starter and going back to highschool has had 3 knee surgeries. Though he
has played 26 games over the last 2 seasons in college. Attempt 3This may have
been my favorite mock. Things started with Cody Ford dropping to the Chargers.
Ford, like Williams in the last mock, is one of the few plug n play OTs in this
draft. He is enormous but not fat, plays mean, great athleticism for his size,
basically he has all the things you can’t teach. His weaknesses are all
correctable technique issues and the Chargers have improved in developing young
players in recent years. Darnell Savage again in the 2nd, see above. In the 3rd
I grabbed Wisconsin Guard Michael Deiter. G isn’t necessarily a need, but Deiter
fills the versatile role that Telesco likes, having started multiple games at
Tackle, Guard, and Center. He isn’t the most athletically gifted, but he’s a
nasty blocker, he’s extremely durable, and he gives the Chargers more
reliable
Los Angeles Chargers Jerseys 2019 , versatile depth that can help push the group of guys they have at IOL.The fourth round presented Te’von Coney at LB
from Notre Dame. I know...the last time they drafted a Notre Dame LB, the
results were sub-optimal. Coney isn’t over hyped though. He is a very productive
LB who wins with good instincts and uses his hands well to shed blocks and make
sure tackles. He has good size and the potential to put on some more weight to
be an enforcer on the inside, which the team may need with Denzel Perryman
dropping back down to 220ish lbs to try and avoid injury. He could come in and
learn from Thomas Davis for a year while splitting snaps with him when he needs
rest. Greg Gaines again. He’s honestly just a guy I think this team could really
use and he’ll be there on day 3 in all likelyhood. Daniel Wise as well. He would
help replace what the team lost in Darius Philon.For the last pick I went with a
guy I’ve liked for a few years now. Cody Thompson from Toledo. He doesn’t have
Tyrell Williams’ deep speed, but he has outstanding acceleration and
explosiveness. He also knows how to use them both as a superb route runner and
producing after the catch, evidenced by the fact that he only ran a 4.57 in the
40 but averaged 18.3 yards per catch for his career in college. He managed 3312
yards receiving and 30 TDs over his career as a receiver. But as a 7th round
pick he’ll need to contribute on special teams as well, and he does with
experience as a punt returner, multiple tackles on punt coverage, and a
highlight play blocking a punt by catching it off the punters foot and walking
it into the endzone for a touchdown. Each of these mocks had a slightly
different approach but each had good results and provided a lot of value to the
team. We only have 2 days left so if you’d like to take a couple stabs at it,
head over to fanspeak and give it a few runs. Important off-season dates (hot
dates coming up! Yow!)"WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections San Diego Chargers Daily
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HistorySan Diego Chargers HumorWhat’s next for the
Chargers?New,31commentsImportant off-season dates (hot dates coming up!
Yow!)PSTShareTweetShareShareWhat’s next for the Chargers?For all but two
franchises, these next two weeks are among the most excruciating of the year.
Twelve teams made the playoffs; now ten of which are at home on their couch.
This is where the Chargers currently find themselves, and it would be easy to
give in to depression and sink into a lonely Cheetos-filled blob.But there are
other options. Not only that, there’s still some Chargers football on the
horizon. The Chargers made headlines a few weeks back when they had more team
members heading to the Pro Bowl than any other (seven!).While Philip Rivers has
decided to stay home for the game (Andrew Luck will take his place), six other
Chargers will see the field this week.Sunday, January 27 @ 2pmThe 2019 Pro
BowlThe Pro Bowl is being held in Orlando, FL, which makes it an attractive
destination for some of the NFL’s finest to take their families. While the
Chargers originally had seven entrants (the most in the NFL), the departure of
Philip Rivers moves them down to six.The Bears now have the most entrants with
eight, but we should have a good time watching key offensive players have a
field day in the Sunshine State (and maybe the defensive guys will have a good
time as well?).WR Keenan AllenRB Melvin Gordon IIIFS Derwin JamesST Adrian
PhillipsC Mike PounceyDE Melvin IngramQB Philip Rivers (Replaced by Andrew
Luck)The fun doesn’t stop there— the Chargers’ coaching staff are also joining
the Pro Bowl
Youth Emeke Egbule Jersey , while the Cowboys will represent the NFC. Much has been made about how Bill Belichick got to learn more about Philip Rivers during
their Pro Bowl meetup. This can be a very important way for coaches to learn
more about potential best-of-the-best free agents, so there’s certainly an
upside to coaching the Pro Bowl.February 3:Super Bowl LIII, Mercedes-Benz
Stadium (Atlanta, Georgia)Well, I guess this is as good a time as any to melt
into a Cheetos-blob, but it’s important to realize that the new league year is
barely a month away and that there’s lots of things to look forward to even
after the Super Bowl (and we’re not even talking about non NFL action that might
interest Chargers fans). February 19:First day for clubs to designate Franchise
or Transition Players February 26 - March 4:NFL Scouting Combine (Lucas Oil
Stadium - Indianapolis, Indiana) March 5:Deadline for clubs to designate
Franchise or Transition Players. The Chargers did not tag anyone in 2018. March
11:Clubs are permitted to contact, and enter into contract negotiations, with
the agents of pending Unrestricted Free Agents on other teams. Often referred to
as the “legal tampering period.” March 13:New League Year and Free Agency Begins
at 4 p.m.All players, whose contracts expire this offseason, will officially do
so.Teams are allowed to have a maximum of 90 players on their active roster
until final cuts in September.Top-51 Rule begins, which means all clubs must be
under the 2019 Salary Cap. However, only the top-51 salaries are counted against
the cap until rosters are paired down to 53 in September.Teams may begin signing
free agents from other teams.Teams may officially begin trading players still
under contract for the 2019 season.So there you have it, Chargers fans! You have
one more chance to see some of your favorite 2018 Chargers in action, but
there’s going to be lots of juicy stories (and probably even more Steelers
drama, LOL) in the next few weeks. It’s not easy, but together we’ll get through
it!-Jason “Turn that frown upside down!” Michaels
