LA Chargers: Five fun position battles after the NFL Draft
By Jason Reed
Joe Reed and K.J. Hill — WR3
Two rookies from the 2020 NFL Draft class are going to be battling for snaps as the third wide receiver position for the LA Chargers. The team selected Joe Reed in the fifth round of the draft while selecting Hill in the seventh round of the draft.
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Hill was one of the biggest steals in the entire draft as he was graded to be as high as a fourth-round pick and could have been a third-round pick in a different draft class that was not so stacked with wide receivers.
Reed, on the other hand, was relatively unknown it seems by Charger fans but has since grown quite popular. He has really sure hands, not dropping any passes over 20 yards last season, and is a legitimate threat in special teams as well as in other areas of the offense, such as running the ball.
The answer right now might seem to be Hill. Hill was a slot receiver for Ohio State and knows the role of a slot receiver to a tee. He is Ohio State’s all-time leading receiver for a reason and he seems to be as polished as a seventh-round pick can be.
While Hill will probably see more snaps at slot than Reed, I would not put it past the Chargers to use Keenan Allen in the slot occasionally with Reed out wide. Allen really thrives when he gets a chance to work out of the slot and the Chargers would have another receiver outside alongside Mike Williams to create separation.
Personally, I hope Reed blossoms into a star and is a late-round gem that way I can get my hands on a Reed number 12 jersey (for obvious reasons).
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However, who wins out as the WR3 widely depends on if the team wants to utilize anyone else other than Hill out of the slot.