LA Chargers Roundtable: Defensive sleepers in the 2020 NFL Draft

Alexander Insdorf: Defensive tackle Jordan Elliot, Missouri

“The Chargers cut Brandon Mebane and signed Linval Joseph. Other than Joseph, the other defensive tackles on the roster are Jerry Tillery, Justin Jones, and Cortez Broughton. While Jones improved last year and there is a good chance for Tillery to develop in the offseason, the team could still use another tackle. The draft has some pretty good ones.

As far as sleepers go, Jordan Elliott is a quality choice. He’s ranked between the third and fourth rounds right now. My February mock draft had him selected in the fourth round to the Chargers.

In terms of defensive tackles in this draft, there’s not many better than Elliott when it comes to the pass rush. Pro Football Focus gave him the highest college career pass-rush grade in the 2020 class. That’s above prospects like Derrick Brown and Javon Kinlaw, who both will probably be taken ahead of Elliott.

Elliott’s draft stock is ultimately lower because he only became a starter in 2019. General managers are going to be hesitant on a prospect without much of a track record, even if a lot of the intangibles and raw skills are there.

What really sells me on Elliott is the lower body strength and the amount of effort he’s really willing to give on each play. Sure, pad level is questionable sometimes and he’s probably not going to get a lot of sacks. But his quickness, strength, and effort really give me a lot of belief that he can not just develop at the next level, but thrive. I’d love to see a few seasons of him playing with Jones and Tillery.”