San Diego Chargers Jeremiah Attaochu deserves shot at starting job

August 24, 2014; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers tackle Joe Staley (74) blocks San Diego Chargers outside linebacker Jeremiah Attaochu (97) during the second quarter at Levi

Jeremiah Attaochu was born on the 17th of January in Ibadan, Nigeria to parents Paul and Comfort. Little did his parents know that 22 years later, their son Jeremiah was going to be selected in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers.

Out of Georgia Tech, Attaochu was the 50th overall pick in last year’s draft due to his 6’3″, 252-pound size and because of his undeniable skill shown in college. In his final three seasons while at GT, Attaochu averaged a very modest 13.2 tackles for loss, 9.5 sacks and 57.6 tackles per season with four career forced fumbles and five passes defended.

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He earned numerous awards while at Georgia Tech ranging from 2013 Coaches/TSN All-ACC Honors to an invitation to the 2013 Reese’s Senior Bowl. His 31.5 career sacks rank fifth in the ACC all-time and number one in all of GT history. Not to mention, his sack yards (226) and career tackles for loss rank first and sixth in school history, respectively.

It is no wonder he was selected by the Bolts in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft. His athleticism, speed and strength showed during workouts as well as in his not-so-humble dealings with the media during the preseason.

In an interview with Nick Canepa of the Union-Tribune, Attaochu stated, “I’m going to be an amazing player. I’m going to be a fixture on this defense for years to come…I was a three-star recruit out of high school playing with all these 4-and-5-star guys. I had the drive to succeed. I was one of the best pass rushers to go through Georgia Tech. But I’m not a big hype guy. I came here to go to work.”

And while his preseason talk was bold, Attaochu played somewhat of a limited role for the Chargers in 2014, playing in only 10 games and recording 10 tackles and two sacks. His biggest game came against the Arizona Cardinals when Attaochu had four tackles as well as two big plays in a blocked punt and a forced fumble on Carson Palmer.

Attaochu didn’t see much success in the rest of 2014, but his fortunes could change in 2015. OLB Dwight Freeney and ILB Andrew Gachkar are free agents this year and I think that it’s time for Attaochu to step up and lead this San Diego line backing corps to success. The reason for this proclamation is that because Freeney is gone, the best current OLB on the right side is Attaochu.

In the off-season, Telesco could potentially go to the free agent market and wheel and deal for a pass-rushing OLB and spend big money. Telesco could take all of the Bolts free agent lunch money and buy a nice cold free agent with the potential of under-performing (see Freeney). The Chargers front office could spend and potentially waste their money addressing the LB corps when more important things need to be attended to (defensive line, offensive line).

Or, the Chargers could save their money on a younger and potentially more effective ‘backer in Attaochu.

If the Chargers let Attaochu play the starting role and concentrate on his skills as an outside linebacker, I think he could be huge for SD in 2015. He played exceptionally in college and showed his value as a sack-master as well as a run-stopper with 12.5 sacks and 16 tackles for loss in his senior season (highs in the nation). Attaochu then showed enough proise to make it past the draft, rookie camp, preseason action and the Chargers final roster cut in order to make the team and score some playing time as well.

If the Chargers don’t think he has developed enough, they could look to draft or sign a Free-agent while Attaochu develops behind another rookie.

At this time though, I believe Attaochu and another LB (maybe Cordarro Law) should be competing for the starting spot. Competition breeds the best play out of everybody and Attaochu is pretty tough competition coming from a non-football background in Nigeria.

The Chargers were horrendous against both the run as well as sacking the QB. San Diego ranked third-worst in the league in sacks with only 26.0 sacks on the season in 2014. Attaochu had nearly half that mark in his senior season.

The Bolts are in a position to where they don’t have a starting OLB and desperately need a pass-rusher. I think they look no further than the sophomore from Georgia Tech. I think having a training camp and preseason competition for the OLB position would be a splendid idea for the Bolts as it would give Attaochu a chance to earn the starting spot, while still giving a new OLB the opportunity to win the spot.

And if Attaochu doesn’t end up winning the OLB position battle (which he probably will), the Bolts should try him at the defensive end position and see how that works out.

According to his Georgia Tech bio, Attaochu “played defensive end as a senior after playing outside linebacker in the 3-4 in 2011 and 2012.”

Attaochu recorded 12.5 sacks while a senior at Georgia Tech which is a pretty impressive mark for a defensive end. But we have to remember that those 12.5 sacks came against players 22 or younger which takes out about half of those sacks from legitimacy.

Regardless though of the logistics, the Bolts have a defensive weapon in Attaochu. He’s fast, fluid and deadly when chasing down ball-carriers due to his relentless motor. He could be the next face of the Chargers pass rush. All Mike McCoy has to do is give him a chance to play.

Next: Should the Chargers Switch to the 4-3?

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