LA Chargers mock draft: Trading down from the 13th pick
By Jason Reed
With the 47th overall pick, the LA Chargers select Trey Smith, IOL, Tennessee
The LA Chargers need serious offensive line help and go back-to-back with offensive linemen in this mock draft, as they should. After getting the team’s planned franchise left tackle, the Chargers snag a franchise-level guard in Trey Smith.
While Wyatt Davis is still the best interior offensive lineman in my book, Smith has been getting a lot of buzz and would be an excellent addition to the LA Chargers’ offensive line. He and Darrisaw would start on the left side of the offensive line right away, with Trai Turner and Bryan Bulaga manning the right side.
The one concern with Smith is the injuries that he has sustained in college, but he had a healthy 2020 and those appear to be behind him.
With the 77th overall pick, the LA Chargers select Quincy Roche, OLB, Miami
This is a selection that would only happen in the LA Chargers move to a 3-4 defense, which is certainly possible as that is what Brandon Staley has coached in all of his NFL stops.
The Chargers are thin in potential outside linebackers and they would get a day one starter with the 78th overall pick in the draft. There is absolutely a chance that Roche goes higher than this in the actual draft, but if he fell to this point, the Chargers would be foolish to pass on him.
Roche is proficient in pass coverage, rushing the passer and in run defense. He might not be elite (yet) in any of the three, but he is someone who can provide everything needed out of a 3-4 outside linebacker.