Who analysts are sending to Chargers

Doug Farrar, Touchdown Wire

Chargers head coach Brandon Staley’s preferences for light boxes and interesting coverages have taken the league by storm, but in Staley’s case over his two seasons in his current position, that’s also led to some serious run defense deficiencies. The Chargers ranked 28th in Football Outsiders’ Defensive Adjusted Line Yards metric in 2021, and they ranked 29th in 2022, so we’re rowing in the wrong direction here.

At 6-foot-5 and 300 pounds, Bresee isn’t the massive run-plugging monster you’d get in a Jordan Davis or Dexter Lawrence, but he proved perfectly capable of creating tackles for loss in his own anarchic fashion. No. 11 can be a real problem as a head-over nose tackle and overall, he’s been a huge pain for opposing offenses through his college career.

I don’t necessarily see defensive tackle as a big enough need to be worth spending a first round pick on unless a top-tier talent slides to 21, similar to the way Derwin James slid to 17 in 2018. A few weeks ago, it seemed like Bresee was in that pantheon, but recent rankings have pretty consistently adjusted to push him down the board in favor of powerful EDGE rushers like Tyree Wilson and Lukas Van Ness.

The Chargers are not devoid of talent on the defensive line, despite their struggles in run defense. It’s difficult to play consistently when three defensive tackles suffer season-ending injuries and another misses a game with an injury of their own. Austin Johnson looked fantastic beforing tearing his MCL and fracturing his kneecap, and his return should immediately solve some issues up front. Same for Christian Covington, who found success in his limited role, and rookie Otito Ogbonnia, who showed plenty of flashes this season.

All that to say: I don’t really think the Chargers think that the Chargers need a defensive tackle in the first round, unless they’re an elite prospect.