The Chargers added a handful of rookies in the 2019 NFL draft. All attention has shifted towards them and how they are going to make an impact this upcoming season, but there are a number of players from the 2018 draft class that are also looking to make their presence felt.
Los Angeles added safety Derwin James, who ended up earning All-Pro status and a couple other accolades in his rookie campaign. Outside of him, there weren’t as many players from the class that had much contribution in Year 1.
With that, here are four players looking to make a jump in their second season.
LB Uchenna Nwosu
The Chargers liked Nwosu coming out of college at USC for his versatile skill-set to rush the passer, set the edge and drop back into coverage. He was taken in the second-round with the likeliness of taking over for linebacker Kyle Emanuel at the SAM role.
From splitting time with Emanuel to the defensive packages they were playing week to week, he hardly ever saw over 20 snaps per game. Nwosu didn’t pop on the stat sheet, totaling just 28 tackles and 3.5 sacks in 268 snaps.
But in the limited action of him being on the field, he showed some major promise as a pass rusher, demonstrating the ability to beat offensive tackles with speed and hand usage.
After the departure of Emanuel, Nwosu is now the starting OTTO going into the 2019 season, and he should see the field quite a bit. 2019 sixth-round selection Emeke Egbule will likely serve as his backup.
DT Justin Jones
Taken in the third-round, Jones’ presence didn’t come until later in the season when they were thin at the position after the losses of Brandon Mebane and Corey Liuget.
The two games that he started came in the playoffs against the Ravens and Patriots. In those games alone, Jones showed some promise in the trenches, posting six tackles, two quarterback hits and a sack.
The Chargers added Jerry Tillery and Cortez Broughton in the draft, while also re-signing Mebane and Damion Square but that shouldn’t hinder Jones’ playing time. He should see an uptick of snaps as a one-technique behind Mebane, even though many suggest he will play the three-technique.
LB Kyzir White
The start to White’s season was quite promising but unfortunately, it was cut short after suffering an ankle injury. Despite being a rookie, White took the starting WILL role by the middle of the preseason over Jatavis Brown. He started the Chargers’ first three regular season games, totalling 17 tackles, three passes defensed and one interception.
Los Angeles added Thomas Davis through free agency and Drue Tranquill in the fourth-round, which added more competition to the positional group. The emergence of Davis could push White out of a starting job to start the season. Not to mention, he will again have to beat out Brown for the starting role once again.
But it’s still very possible that the former West Virginia product will see the field significantly, considering they play the majority of the time in a dime package and he has the ability to play all three linebacker spots. White, the football-hunter, should still have an impact in his second season regardless of where he’s lined up.
WR Dylan Cantrell
Cantrell, the Chargers’ sixth-round selection, spent the season as a practice squad member for much of the season. a knee injury resulted in him being cut, but he was picked up later. He failed to appear in a game despite being placed on the active roster late in the season.
There is plenty of hope for Cantrell this upcoming season, as there will be a competition for the No. 3 and 4 wide receiver job after the loss of Tyrell Williams. Cantrell is an early fan-favorite along with Artavis Scott.
If the former Texas Tech product solidifies one of the spots, he provides quarterback Philip Rivers with a big-bodied target who has the speed to beat defenders vertically, is proven with hands and uses his stature well to box out defenders and make plays.
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