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Los Angeles Chargers: 2017 NFL Draft retrospective

By Jason Reed

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 07: Desmond King #20 of the Los Angeles Chargers runs onto the field before the game against the Oakland Raiders at RingCentral Coliseum on November 07, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 07: Desmond King #20 of the Los Angeles Chargers runs onto the field before the game against the Oakland Raiders at RingCentral Coliseum on November 07, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Chargers
(Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Chargers /

Rounds 2-4:

Second-round selection: Forrest Lamp, G, Western Kentucky

Forrest Lamp was viewed as the Chargers’ best selection right after the 2017 NFL Draft. Prior to the draft, Lamp was projected to be a mid-to-late first-rounder and instead he slipped to the second round and the Chargers seemingly bolstered their offensive line as a result.

Lamp also dealt with injuries his rookie season, but unlike Williams, he has been unable to rebound from it. Injuries have plagued his young career thus far and if he can’t stay healthy and live up to his potential this season, then his NFL career very well could come to an abrupt end.

Third-round selection: Dan Feeney, G, Indiana

The Los Angeles Chargers selected guards with back-to-back picks in the 2020 NFL Draft and the two are going to be competing for the team’s left guard position in the 2020 season.

Dan Feeney has had a much better career than Lamp thus far but I still would not call it a great one. He was solid in his rookie season and appeared to be someone who was going to be an impact blocker and get better as his career progressed.

That has not really been the case as Feeney as been a below-average guard in the last two seasons. He is not someone who is going to kill the offensive line, if there is talent around him, but he will be noticeably worse than the rest of the Chargers’ line, especially if they draft a left tackle in the first round.

It is not a failing selection because of the talent that was picked directly after him.

Fourth-round selection: Rayshawn Jenkins, S, Miami

Rayshawn Jenkins did not get a chance to be a consistent starter for the Los Angeles Chargers until this season as the team was dealing with injuries at safety. Jenkins started all 16 games for the Chargers and wasn’t bad, recording three interceptions and 54 combined tackles.

He is not someone who is going to make a defense better, per se, but he is serviceable as a rotational safety and is someone who the team could trust to be out there in certain packages. He did well in his leap from getting under 10 percent of the defensive snaps to 99 percent in 2019.

With Adrian Phillips signing with the New England Patriots, we might see a breakout year out of Jenkins after getting a taste of starting last year. As a fourth-round selection, the Chargers did not do so bad.

  • Grade: B

    • Could have drafted:

    Tarik Cohen

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