2011 NFL Draft Needs: San Diego Chargers

If statistics were the only thing that mattered in the NFL the San Diego Chargers should have been the Super Bowl favorite this past season. Unfortunately for the Chargers, impressive statistics don’t necessarily translate to wins, just ask them. After boasting the top offense and defense this past season, San Diego failed to make the playoffs with a 9-7 record.

So what went wrong? Any combination of terrible special teams, hold-outs by Vincent Jackson and Marcus McNeill and several injuries played a part in the Chargers missing the playoffs for the first time since 2005. San Diego’s special teams this past season have been mentioned as possibly one of the worst in NFL history. They had four punts blocked, three kick-offs returned against them and opponents averaged 18.9 yards per punt return. The low-point of the season for the special teams unit came in a week five loss against Oakland where the Raiders blocked two punts in the first five minutes of the game.

Philip Rivers is coming off a career season despite numerous injuries at running back, tight end and wide receiver. During various points of the season the Chargers were without Antonio Gates, Malcom Floyd, Ryan Mathews, Legedu Naanee, Mike Tolbert and Patrick Crayton. Injuries aside, Rivers was without Jackson, his top receiver, for 11 games because of a contract dispute. With a healthy offense in 2011, the sky is the limit for Rivers and the Chargers.

Greg Manusky takes over for Ron Rivera as defensive coordinator and he is expected to bring an edge to the league’s top unit. Led by Shaun Phillips’ 11, the Chargers finished tied for second in the NFL in sacks with 47. San Diego finished with the fourth best run defense and the top ranked pass defense and will look to only build on those numbers next season. The Chargers took a chance this offseason when they singed injury prone safety Bob Sanders to come in and compete for the strong safety position. If Sanders can stay healthy and Eric Weddle re-signs, San Diego will feature one of the best safety tandems in the NFL. Depending on free agency, the Chargers might have several holes to fill on defense.

1. Defensive end: The Chargers may choose not to bring back Jacques Cesaire and even if they do an upgrade is needed at this position. The draft is deep with 3-4 defensive linemen especially in the first couple of rounds. San Diego should have a chance at Cameron Jordan, J.J. Watt, Adrian Clayborn or Cameron Heyward. Christian Ballard of Iowa could be available in the second round and could compete for a starting job right away.

2. Linebacker: I didn’t specify outside or insider here because San Diego may have significant holes to fill at both positions. If the CBA gets figured out, Kevin Burnett, Stephen Cooper and Brandon Siler are all scheduled to become free agents. Donald Butler, the teams fourth inside backer, missed the entire season with an Achilles tendon injury. Greg Jones, Quan Sturdivant and Kelvin Sheppard are all ILB options beyond the first round. On the outside, Larry English the team’s first round pick in 2009, has been nothing short of a disappointment. English, who only played in eight games this past season due to injuries, will probably get one final season to make an impression. The Chargers may chose to go this avenue in round one and one player they will probably take a hard look at is Justin Houston of Georgia.

3. Wide receiver/offensive tackle: I had a hard time picking one position here so I decided to list both of them. Jackson has been franchised and I would expect AJ Smith to try hard to lock him up for the long term future. After Jackson, both Floyd and Naanee are set to become free agents. San Diego is going to have to add a receiver at some point in the first three rounds and a few options could be: Torrey Smith, Titus Young or Leonard Hankerson. Depending on if the Chargers re-sign Jeromey Clary, the team may look to draft a offensive tackle relatively early. San Diego did tender Brandyn Dombrowski and he could slide over to the right side to replace Clary if he leaves. Either way adding some depth at the position is a good idea.