Mike Clay is an NFL and fantasy football analyst at ESPN and spends a lot of time going through algorithms and formulas to project player and team stats prior to the regular season.
Recently, Clay revealed his defensive projections for the upcoming season.
Let’s take a look at how he believes the Chargers players will fare in 2021 under head coach Brandon Staley’s defense.
Defensive line
| Players | Snaps | Tackles | Sacks |
| Justin Jones | 724 | 48 | 3.1 |
| Linval Joseph | 713 | 60 | 3.1 |
| Jerry Tillery | 702 | 35 | 4.5 |
| Christian Covington | 346 | 23 | 1.3 |
| Cortez Broughton | 130 | 9 | 0.6 |
Edge defenders
| Player | Snaps | Tackles | Sacks |
| Joey Bosa | 897 | 66 | 10.7 |
| Uchenna Nwosu | 454 | 34 | 4.2 |
| Kyler Fackrell | 378 | 23 | 2.7 |
| Chris Rumph II | 248 | 15 | 1.6 |
| Emeke Egbule | 54 | 3 | 0.5 |
Linebackers
| Player | Snaps | Tackles | Sacks | Interceptions |
| Kenneth Murray | 1,026 | 123 | 0.8 | 0.7 |
| Kyzir White | 486 | 66 | 0.4 | 0.5 |
| Drue Tranquill | 173 | 25 | 0.2 | 0.1 |
| Nick Niemann | 151 | 20 | 0.2 | 0.1 |
Cornerbacks
| Player | Snaps | Tackles | Sacks | Interceptions |
| Chris Harris Jr. | 994 | 66 | 1.2 | 1.0 |
| Michael Davis | 951 | 66 | 0.2 | 2.5 |
| Asante Samuel Jr. | 702 | 53 | 0.3 | 1.5 |
| Tevaughn Campbell | 270 | 19 | 0.2 | 0.5 |
| Brandon Facyson | 65 | 6 | 0.0 | 0.1 |
| Ryan Smith | 43 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.1 |
Safeties
| Player | Snaps | Tackles | Sacks | Interceptions |
| Derwin James | 972 | 104 | 1.5 | 2.7 |
| Nasir Adderley | 972 | 81 | 0.2 | 1.0 |
| Alohi Gilman | 270 | 24 | 0.3 | 0.5 |
| Mark Webb | 162 | 14 | 0.1 | 0.3 |
