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Ian Ziering of NFL.com this week released his list of 38 special draft prospects. Among those 38, he named 15 specifically as game changers. He also noted some safe players and some system-reliant players. Since the Los Angeles Chargers are picking 7th overall, we will focus on the bigger impact players. Here are Ziering’s 15 game changing prospects from highest to lowest ceiling:
- Myles Garrett, EDGE, Texas A&M
- Leonard Fournette, RB, LSU
- Solomon Thomas, DE, Stanford
- Jonathan Allen, DE, Alabama
- Mitch Trubisky, QB, North Carolina
- Malik Hooker, S, Ohio State
- Jamal Adams, S, LSU
- Taco Charlton, DE, Michigan
- Malik McDowell, DT, Michigan State
- Dalvin Cook, RB, Florida State
- Marshon Lattimore, CB, Ohio State
- O.J. Howard, TE, Alabama
- Sidney Jones, CB, Washington
- Reuben Foster, ILB, Alabama
- David Njoku, TE, Miami
Now, it seems rather unlikely that the Chargers will spend their first round pick on a quarterback, so we can safely ignore Trubisky, and Garrett is currently the consensus top overall player in this year’s draft (yes, I know, we have not even seen the NFL Combine yet), so we probably should not spend too much time thinking about him either. Running back is not exactly a big need in Los Angeles either, nor is the tight end position.
What that leaves us with is a handful of exciting defensive talent mostly along the defensive line and in the defensive secondary. Given the relative depth at safety in this draft and the Chargers’ positional need along the defensive line, the ideal use of the 7th overall pick, if you accept Ziering’s ranking, would be whichever of the defensive line prospects fall to them. Whether the Chargers re-sign Melvin Ingram or not in free agency, they will still need another complementary piece alongside defensive rookie of the year Joey Bosa.
What do you think about Ziering’s rankings and who do you hope the Chargers take at #7 overall?