BFTB Live Mock Draft Show Recap: Chargers maximize athleticism, upside with late-round picks

On Wednesday night, Matthew Stanley, Garrett Sisti, and Daniel Stebbins got together to run through a live mock draft show in preparation for next week’s draft show. Until PFF’s mock draft machine crapped out on us prior to the final pick of the night, I’d say the whole thing went quite smoothly.

For those of you who didn’t, or weren’t able to make the show, I thought I’d at least put together a quick recap of the picks. We decided ahead of time that we were only going to do the first six rounds which gave us six picks to work with. Four picks in the seventh just seemed like a bit much and we weren’t going to spend all that time debating on a handful of dart throws.

Without further ado, here’s how things shook out.

Round One, Pick #17: WR Chris Olave, Ohio State

We had the pick of the litter when the Chargers were on the clock. Jordan Davis and Trevor Penning were both on the board, along with Devonte Wyatt and the pair of Ohio State wideouts. Chris Olave won out as both Stanley and Stebbins picked him as their preferred selection over my pick of Davis.

Olave’s sub-4.40 speed and craft route-running immediately adds a new layer to the offense and it’d be tough not to love that addition to Justin Herbert’s arsenal.

Round Three, Pick #79: OG Dylan Parham, Memphis

Going from #17 to #79 felt like a long wait. In this mock, a lot of good players were selected and didn’t leave a whole lot to love at this pick. However, Parham was definitely the best value here. He was the 66th-ranked prospect on the board and still feels a need for the team. The 6’3, 311-pounder would immediately slide in at right guard and give the Chargers a little more grace at right tackle.

Round Four, Pick #123: RB Pierre Strong Jr., South Dakota State

At this pick, all four of us gave different players as our preferred selections. We then left it up to the chat to make the final decision for us and Strong won the vote. I can’t complain because I absolutely love strong as a complementary option to Austin Ekeler. Strong tested extremely well at the combine, including a sub-4.40 forty and a number of marks that put him consistently in the top-five of his position. He dominated the competition at the FCS level and I think he’s got a fairly bright future at the next level.

Round Five, Pick #160: DT John Ridgeway, Arkansas

We sort’ve thought making this pick here was “cheating” but quite a few rankings we looked up had Ridgeway ranked somewhere around here so we decided it was realistic enough. After all, plenty of players fall down a round or two for unknown reasons every year. Ridgeway provides even more reinforcements along the interior and gets some more bodies in a group that’s likely to move on from Jerry Tillery and others in 2023. At 6’5 and 320 pounds, I like his size to replace Linval Joseph in the middle.

Round Six, Pick #195: OLB Kyron Johnson, Kansas

For those of you who aren’t aware, Johnson played a lot of edge rusher for the Jayhawks despite being listed at 6’0 and 230 pounds. But man, this guy is a football player. He’s not afraid to shove the crown of his helmet into your throat if it means making a play. Johnson was invited to this year’s Senior Bowl where he got the chance to compete with top talent. His highlight of the week was putting 6’7 Penning on skates during a one-on-one drill. So we know he’s tough, but it also doesn’t hurt that he ran a 4.40 in the forty. If he can’t find a meaningful role as a rookie, he’s got all the makings of a long-time special teams contributor.

Round Six, Pick #215: CB Isaac Taylor-Stuart, USC

We didn’t want to leave this mock without landing a cornerback, so that where Taylor-Stuart comes in. We liked his combination of height (6’2), weight (200), and speed (4.42) this late on day three and it’s easy to see the Chargers grabbing a player from their own backyard. But overall, he’s really just a project at this point. His physical tools will keep teams interested but it’ll be up to the right coach to get the most out of him as he continues to develop.