Now into the back half of the 1st round, whirledpeas helps kick us toward the 2nd (or the potential landing area for the Rams to trade up into the 1st...):
The Chargers definitely have some areas of need in the draft, with La'El Collins and T.J. Clemmings still available to shore up a RT spot, I decided to go with Big Malcom Brown out of Texas as a disruptive Defensive Tackle. He excels at pushing the pocket and making everyone else’s job a little easier. He will be a much welcome addition to the attacking style of defense that John Pagano has installed. The AFC West is a division in flux right now and this is a good start to enhancing a defense that pooped out at the end of last year. I was tempted to go [Todd] Gurley or [Melvin] Gordon for RB but I feel that Jay Ajayi or Tevin Coleman should be within reach in round 2.
In 2014, the Chargers spent their first two picks on CB Jason Verrett and OLB Jeremiah Attaochu. The year previous, their second round pick was spent on ILB Manti Te'o. San Diego's first three picks in the 2012 NFL Draft were spent on defense: DE Melvin Ingram in the 1st, DT Kendall Reyes in the 2nd and S Brandon Taylor in the 3rd.
This isn't a team that has shied away from defense.
So even though John Gennaro from Bolts From The Blue used his pick in the SBN NFL Bloggers Mock to go with Pitt OT T.J. Clemmings, I can't disagree with a defensive pick here. I did like Gennaro's justification in that San Diego has tended to double up on prime needs through free agency and the draft.
Pick |
Team |
TSTer |
TST Mock Pick |
SBN Site |
SBN Site Pick |
1 |
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (link) |
JakeM70 |
Jameis Winston (QB, Florida St.) |
Bucs Nation (link) |
Jameis Winston (QB, Florida St.) |
2 |
Tennessee Titans (link) |
KENTOG |
Marcus Mariota (QB, Oregon) |
Music City Miracles (link) |
Marcus Mariota (QB, Oregon) |
3 |
Jacksonville Jaguars (link) |
CodyAllenFTW |
Vic Beasley (OLB, Clemson) |
Big Cat Country (link) |
Vic Beasley (OLB, Clemson) |
4 |
Oakland Raiders (link) |
Danrarbc |
Amari Cooper (WR, Alabama) |
Silver and Black Pride (link) |
Leonard Williams (DT, USC) |
5 |
Washington (link) |
holtfan |
Dante Fowler, Jr. (DE, Florida) |
Hogs Haven (link) |
La'el Collins (OL, LSU) |
6 |
New York Jets (link) |
Rainman23 |
Randy Gregory (DE, Nebraska) |
Gang Green Nation (link) |
Kevin White (WR, West Virginia) |
7 |
Chicago Bears (link) |
13-Warner |
Kevin White (WR, West Virginia) |
Windy City Gridiron (link) |
Danny Shelton (DT, Washington) |
8 |
Atlanta Falcons (link) |
BaldBilly |
Leonard Williams (DT, USC) |
The Falcoholic (link) |
Randy Gregory (DE, Nebraska) |
9 |
New York Giants (link) |
Rammer18-84 |
Danny Shelton (DT, Washington) |
Big Blue View (link) |
Brandon Scherff (OT, Iowa) |
10 |
St. Louis Rams (link) |
Rem Freeman |
Brandon Scherff (OT, Iowa) |
Turf Show Times (link) |
Amari Cooper (WR, Alabama) |
11 |
Minnesota Vikings (link) |
STLcoach |
Trae Waynes (CB, Michigan St.) |
Daily Norseman (link) |
Trae Waynes (CB, Michigan St.) |
12 |
Cleveland Browns (link) |
blarghamuffin |
DeVante Parker (WR, Louisville) |
Dawgs By Nature (link) |
DeVante Parker (WR, Louisville) |
13 |
New Orleans Saints (link) |
turpinforpresident |
Shane Ray (DE, Missouri) |
Canal Street Chronicles (link) |
Dante Fowler, Jr. (DE, Florida) |
14 |
Miami Dolphins (link) |
BirdmanRainH20 |
Eric Kendricks (ILB, UCLA) |
The Phinsider (link) |
Todd Gurley (RB, Georgia) |
15 |
San Francisco 49ers |
recently_relo'd |
Dorial Green-Beckham (WR, Oklahoma) |
Niners Nation (link) |
Malcom Brown (DT, Texas) |
16 |
Houston Texans |
12inthebox |
Ereck Flowers (OT, Miami) |
Battle Red Blog (link) |
Bud Dupree (DE, Kentucky) |
17 |
San Diego Chargers |
whirledpeas |
Malcom Brown (DT, Texas) |
Bolts From the Blue (link) |
T.J. Clemmings (OT, Pitt) |