Chargers take DT Jurrell Casey in re-do of 2011 draft

Like most of the drafts that happened before 2013, the team’s first-round pick didn’t end up going too well. The 2011 draft wound-up landing somewhere in the middle, with defensive tackle Corey Liuget enjoying a lengthy, yet underwhelming, career with the Chargers.

If I had to describe Liuget’s career with the Bolts, I think I can only call it “up-and-down.” In three out of his first six seasons, Liuget recorded double-digit tackles-for-loss. However, he only went above five tackles-for-loss in four of his nine full seasons. Neither of those double-digit seasons came in consecutive seasons, either. His best season sack-wise came back in 2012 when he registered seven. The following year, he recorded 5.5. From then on, he only broke four sacks one more time. He unfortunately became a forgettable presence on the Chargers defense over the second half of his career on the west coast and it ultimately led to the team moving on from the 28-year old.

In his place, should the Chargers hypothetically get the chance to re-do their pick back then, Brad Gagnon of Bleacher Report believes the pick would now be defensive tackle Jurrell Casey. Casey was originally selected by the Titans in the third round and went on to be a much more consistent and disruptive presence along Tennessee’s line.

Here are Gagnon’s thoughts on the selection of Casey over Liuget:

“Liuget was a decent starter for seven seasons with the Chargers, but fellow interior defensive lineman Jurrell Casey has been a lot more successful in Tennessee.”

“The original third-round pick out of USC has made the Pro Bowl in each of the last five seasons (Liuget has never earned that honor) and he’s been a model of durability, missing just seven starts in nine NFL seasons. He beats out Pouncey, who today is a Charger but has missed 22 games in the last four seasons alone.”

Liuget finished his career in Los Angeles with 59 tackles-for-loss and 24 sacks. Casey, in that same span, recorded 79 tackles-for-loss and 46 sacks. The former USC Trojan was far-and-away the more disruptive player on a year-by-year basis. Could you imagine Casey playing inside of Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram, especially during those prime years? Who knows the level of havoc we all could have seen over the last decade.