Meetings at combine show Chargers looking for a quarterback

The NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis is in full swing. Hundreds of professional prospects have hit the field for workouts and drills.

That’s the part that we see on television. What we don’t see is a behind-the-scenes process where teams are having meetings and sometimes formal interviews with some of these players.

The Los Angeles have reportedly already spoken with two quarterbacks, perhaps giving some truth to the idea that the team is looking for a future signal caller.

Since his performance in the Senior Bowl, Kyle Lauletta’s is a name that has come up often in connection with the Chargers. He met with the team at the combine, but wouldn’t confirm whether a formal interview has been set up or not.

Richmond QB Kyle Laurletta said he talked with the Los Angeles Chargers at the Senior Bowl and a couple of scouts here at the combine. Lauletta would not say if he had a formal interview with the Chargers this week. https://t.co/IVUHU5E3Zd pic.twitter.com/iTA73b9rBV

— Eric Williams (@eric_d_williams) March 2, 2018

Lauletta was not on the big radar after coming out of Richmond. He threw 73 touchdown passes in college but also had 35 interceptions. However, he dazzled in the Senior Bowl, showing pro scouts he could be a real sleeper in this draft.

Riley Ferguson out of Memphis is another name the team spoke to at the combine and the fact that they also talked to him at the East-West Shrine Game could mean there is real interest there.

In two years at Memphis, Ferguson put up incredible numbers, throwing for 7,955 yards and 70 touchdowns. His workouts will be interesting but the Chargers must be careful of him as Paxton Lynch also put up those kind of numbers in the same offense at Memphis, leading to him becoming a first-round pick of the Denver Broncos.

To say that Lynch has struggled would be a mild understatement.

In addition to the two meetings at the combine, Mason Rudolph spoke with the Chargers at the Senior Bowl and has had a personal workout with Philip Rivers.

2018 NFL draft: QB Mason Rudolph works out with #Chargers' Philip Rivers https://t.co/57K9qBFZXt By @GavinoBorquez

— Chargers Wire (@TheChargersWire) March 2, 2018

Though general manager Tom Telesco has drafted one quarterback in his tenure with the team (Brad Sorenson in 2013), this could be the year when he makes a significant move.

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You can take these combine meetings with a grain of salt, but to suggest that they are meaningless would be incorrect. Teams aren’t going to have conversations with players unless there would be a real interest in drafting them.

So, Rivers’ successor could be chosen in just about seven weeks. The Chargers do have other needs and the team is good enough to make a deep run next season, so drafting a quarterback shouldn’t be considered the top priority.

However, this quarterback class is too good to pass up, and Telesco must recognize that.

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