We're all excited about Antwan Barnes being re-signed, righ? Well, also reaching agreements tonight are rookies OT Stephen Schilling — sixth-round draft pick out of Michigan — and LB Andrew Gachkar, a seventh-round draft pick out of Missouri. We don't have any financial details at the moment, but we can tell you that they are four-year agreements.
That means the Chargers now have deals in place with three of their eight draft picks; we're almost halfway there!
In case you need a refresher, here's what John Gennaro had to say back in April after these guys were drafted:
Round 6, Pick 36 (201) - Steve Schilling, OL Michigan
The Chargers are sure good at filling the backup OL spots with versatile guys. There's Scott Mruczkowski, who can play Guard or Center. There's Tyronne Green, who can play Guard or Tackle (and Center in a pinch). There's Brandyn Dombrowski, who can play Guard or Tackle. Now you can add to that list Steve Schilling, who played both RT (pre-Rich Rodriguez) and LG (with Rodriguez) at the University of Michigan.
The Chargers have said they envision him as a Tackle, which could mean he has a chance to beat out Dombrowski and eventually take over for Jeromey Clary (when Clary becomes more expensive). Clary himself was a 6th round pick, and Dombrowski was an Undrafted Free Agent, so it makes sense that the Chargers would look to line up more depth for the future of this position in later rounds.
Round 7, Pick 31 (234) - Andrew Gachkar, LB Missouri
An interesting pick in that there's not much information out there about him. Supposedly the reason he only played two seasons at Missouri is that he fought back from some life-threatening illness, inspiring his teammates and earning the team MVP award from them after coming back and leading the team in tackles. However, the one article that seems to be out there outlining what the illness was has disappeared from the face of the internet. CONSPIRACY!
Anyway, Gachkar is a bit undersized to be a pass-rushing OLB. He's known as a smart and fast player that doesn't possess the strength to fight through blocks, so my guess is that the Chargers are going to give him a shot to make an impact on special teams before deciding what his position will be going forward.