When the Chargers shocked their fan base by trading for All-Peo edge defender Khalil Mack late last week, it immediately crossed off one of the team’s biggest offseason needs. Now with one less position to worry about in the draft — at least, in the early rounds — the Chargers can laser in on other vital position they must reinforce ahead of the 2022 season.
In a new mock by CBS Sports’ Ryan Wilson, the Chargers are once again gifted one of the most-athletic and impactful players in Georgia defensive tackle Jordan Davis at #17.
Here’s what Wilson had to say about the pick:
“Davis dropped some weight, showed up at the combine and at 6-foot-6, 341 pounds, ran the 40 in 4.78 seconds, had a 32-inch vertical, and a broad jump of 10 feet, 3 inches — and oh, by the way, he was a one-man wrecking crew in the SEC. It’s easy to say Davis is a two-down player but his obvious strength and surprising speed make a legit three-down threat who just needs to refine his pass-rush arsenal beyond the bull rush. The biggest question is if he can keep his weight down, which directly correlates to his stamina and his ability to stay on the field.”
I think one of the craziest things that Davis brings to a team is that, due to his elite combination of size and athletic ability, he doesn’t have to be all that technically-sound. While I know that sounds odd, Davis’ ability to muddle the backfield by simply penetrating off the snap is an actual game-wrecking trait. As you’ve probably heard before, the fastest way from point A to point B is a straight line. That about sums up how Davis win along the interior. Especially with guys like Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa coming off the edge to shrink the pocket around the quarterback, the next step is to shrink the pocket in front of him.
Jordan Davis pass rush pic.twitter.com/n9EkDEDSiS
— ً (@TreyIance) March 8, 2022
The Bolts land another “Khalil” this offseason as they used their third-round pick on Boise State’s Khalil Shakir, a 6’0, 196-pound wideout with 4.43 speed.
This past season, Shakir led the Broncos with 1,117 receiving yards and seven touchdowns on 77 catches. He also handled punt return and kick return duties en route to earning First-Team All-Mountain West honors.
NFL.com draft analyst Lance Zierlein calls Shakir a “a coach’s dream” due to his competitive toughness, versatility, and character on and off the field. The Murrieta, CA native isn’t an incredible athlete by the NFL’s standards, but Zierlein still notes that he still found a way to put an “emphatic stamp” on the game each week, such as this monster catch below:
Khalil Shakir is a future ____ pic.twitter.com/ztBu0kJSfP
— PFF Draft (@PFF_College) March 11, 2022
As I mentioned above, Shakir’s versatility was taken advantage of by BSU as he was deployed as a wildcat quarterback, running back, and on jet sweeps. He received at least 17 carries in each of his final two collegiate seasons, finishing with 148 and 130 rushing yards, respectively.
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