| Team Needs | |||
| Starter | Starter Competition | Depth | Projects |
| Current starter is FA next year and has no surefire understudy | Current starter is FA next year and has understudy or current starter is inexperienced | One or more backups are FAs next year | May need a new starter or backup after 2012 season |
| S, FB, C, DT | S, ILB, WR, C, DT, OLB, OG |
S, ILB, WR, RB, TE, CB, OT |
QB, K, OLB, DT, DE, TE |
Obviously, I decided to bring back the team needs chart. I'll keep it up throughout the bowl season as well. The "Starter" section is still small because I'm still using the same criteria as before. To be a "need" at starter there either needs to be an actual opening because the current starter will (potentially) be gone next year. If you're looking for a current starter to be replaced next season, then you want the "Starter Competition" category. I added OG to that category since Dielman's future is a doubt, we have capable OGs on the roster next season, but the Chargers could do better than Green and Vazquez.
There's also a possibility that we could switch to the 4-3 next season with a new coaching staff in place. If that's the case, then most of the mentions of OLB can be considered to be the same as mentioning at DE. It would also mean that the Chargers don't need a starter or depth at DT since Liuget, Castillo, Martin and Thomas would form a decent unit. Any reference to ILB would translate to both MLB and OLB. However, Donald Butler belongs on this team going forward and should fit one of those positions. I'm not sure where Shaun Phillips would fit, but either way he only fills one OLB or DE spot. More would be needed. Should be an interesting offseason of rebuilding if that happens. Anyway, on to our featured game.
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| This game doesn't have the glamor of a championship game, but still features two very good teams in a rivalry game. It also has one of the highest ranked prospects playing on Saturday that matches a Chargers need. That would be Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon. He's only a junior, but he's a lock to declare. Oklahoma State also has one of the top safeties in Markelle Martin. Unfortunately, the Oklahoma Sooners will be without one of my favorite college players WR Ryan Broyles, who would have been a likely 2nd round last year, but returned and ended up tearing his ACL. Since his game is speed-based, he will likely drop in the draft now. His loss seems to have affected QB Landry Jones who went from the #2 QB behind luck to maybe the 3rd or 4th best QB in the draft. That might be enough to keep him in school or put him on the Chiefs radar in the first round. Games like this are pivotal for his stock. It's an interesting matchup. |
I'll go over the individual players after the jump.
| BFTB Scouting Targets: | |||||
| Player | School | Pos. | Class | Height | Weight |
| Justin Blackmon | Oklahoma St. |
WR | Jr. | 6'1 | 211 lbs |
| To be the perfect WR prospect he'd have to be a little taller, but his leaping ability does a lot to make up for that. He's a smart player and works hard, but his 2010 DUI would tell you his judgment isn't perfect. He's not going to wow anyone at the combine in the non-football drills, but he can run routes, fool defenders, beat defenders one-on-one and his hands and body control are near perfect. I haven't heard this comp before, but maybe a Reggie Wayne one fits. (1st round) | |||||
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Markelle Martin |
Oklahoma St. | S |
Sr. | 6'0 | 202 lbs |
| A safety with good size, very good speed and a pension for getting injured. He'll try to finally stay healthy this year as he shows of his awareness and diagnostic abilities from the safety position. He's not a big hitter, but he's an aggressive player and his capable of knocking balls loose. He's shown that he's rangy and can cover as well or better than any college safety can. It'll be interesting to see him have to take on Fuller at times. (2nd round) |
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| Ryan Broyles | Oklahoma | WR | Sr. | 5'10 | 187 lbs |
| His smallish size could be a problem in the NFL. His speed is good but not at an elite level. He's more of a slot receiver where he can pick up a lot of YAC. He's very quick and hard to cover, he breaks effortlessly out of routes. Some character concerns as he was arrested for attempted larceny back in 2007, but he became a team leader and seems to have matured. He should be able to return kicks and punts in the NFL. All of this assuming he gets his speed back. (He was a 2nd or 3rd rounder, but teams are not going to get a good gauge on him with the injury) |
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Travis Lewis |
Oklahoma |
OLB | Sr. | 6'1 | 232 lbs |
| I skipped over Lewis last time around because he missed that game with an injury. He should be healthy now. Last year he was very highly thought of and I glowingly referred to him as a playmaker would could transition to being a 3-4 ILB. Right now, his scouting grade has dropped because he's seen as undersized. He's a intense competitor, but that doesn't translate to big hits on the field. Instead he's a fundamentally sound tackler who takes excellent pursuit angles. He looks like he could be an asset in coverage. (3rd Round) |
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| NFL Prospects: | |||||
| Player | School | Pos. | Class | Height | Weight |
| Landry Jones | Oklahoma | QB | Sr. | 6'4 | 230 lbs |
| The #3 or #4 ranked QB that could be in this draft. Accuracy is his top skill. Has played in a spread offense and would benefit from going to a team that has a variety of solid targets to throw to. (1st or 2nd round) |
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| Levy Adcock | Oklahoma St. | OT | Sr. | 6'6 | 322 lbs |
| Big, tough, hard nosed, run blocking specialist OT who has that means streak that scouts look for. No character issues, very durable. Will have trouble with speed rushers in the NFL. (2nd round) | |||||
| Brandon Weeden | Oklahoma St. | QB | Sr. | 6'3 | 217 lbs |
| Kind of a lean QB. Tough though and played through a ruptured tendon in the thumb of his throwing hand last year. He's spread QB that also has a gunslinger label. He's pretty raw, but athletic. Throws a little sidearmed, kind of like a SS in baseball, which makes sense because he's played a lot of baseball. (5th round) | |||||
| Sleepers: | |||||
| Player | School | Pos. | Class | Height | Weight |
| Jamell Fleming | Oklahoma | CB | Sr. | 5'10 | 192 lbs |
| Great matchup for him in this game against Justin Blackmon. Big chance to improve his stock. (Late Rounds) |
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| Frank Alexander | Oklahoma | DE | Sr. | 6'3 | 262 lbs |
| Had him listed as having an outside shot at play 3-4 OLB, but with the Chargers future defensive scheme up in the air it's worth checking him out as a 4-3 DE. (UDFA) |
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| James Hanna | Oklahoma | TE | Sr. | 6'3 | 235 lbs |
| A nice weapon for the Sooner offense, Chargers always looking for TE competition. (UDFA) | |||||