The Los Angeles Chargers have added more depth to the wide receiver position, selecting Texas Tech’s Dylan Cantrell in the sixth round (No. 191 overall) of the 2018 NFL draft.
Already deep at the position with Keenan Allen, Tyrell Williams, Mike Williams and Travis Benjamin, the team felt that Cantrell was a good fit at this stage of the process.
A four-star recruit coming out of high school, Cantrell saved his best season for last at Texas Tech, catching 71 passes for 816 yards and seven touchdowns as a senior. He has good size at 6-3 and 205 pounds and his scouting report suggests he has good hands and has some experience playing in the slot.
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At the scouting combine, he posted strong measurables with a 4.59-second 40-yard dash, a 38.5-inch vertical leap and a broad jump that spanned 10 feet, eight inches.
At the professional level, he will be a guy who has to scramble to make the roster due to all of the talent around him, making him a candidate for the team’s practice squad. The team also has Isaiah Burse, Andre Patton, Artavis Scott and Geremy Davis on the roster.
You could have argued that the Chargers needed another receiver I preferred Iowa State’s Allen Lazard), but it’s interesting that with all of the talk of drafting a quarterback as Phillip Rivers’ possible successor, the team has yet to take one, having golden opportunities to grab guys like Chris Lauletta and Luke Falk.
The Chargers have one selection remaining in the draft, barring trades. That will come in the seventh round at No. 251 overall.