Against the Buffalo Bills in Week 2, the 2018 rookies shined for the Los Angeles Chargers. Is this Telesco’s best draft class yet?
The Los Angeles Chargers have been beneficiaries of an ascending general manager in Tom Telesco, who has begun to earn a reputation for hitting on multiple picks both early and late in the draft. Nowhere was this more apparent than his 2016 class, with multiple talented starters who have prominent roles with the team.
However, the new crop of rookies from the 2018 NFL Draft have been most impressive, which begs the question: Is this rookie class Telesco’s best yet? This writer thinks so.
The 2016 class is arguably the next best, boasting two players that are dominant at their position: Joey Bosa and Hunter Henry. Coupled with a solid sixth-round punter in Drew Kaser, the Chargers have three long-term starters at important positions.
Having said that, the class remains very top-heavy. Third-round center Max Tuerk and fourth-round linebacker Joshua Perry barely saw the field and are no longer with the team. The “X-factor” in this class is Jatavis Brown, who had a fantastic rookie year, but has regressed since.
That’s where the 2018 class begins to show its dominance, as fourth round pick Kyzir White has already overtaken Brown for the outside linebacker position and played well. Notching his first interception against the Bills, White already looks better in space and is more of a sure tackler than the man he’s replacing.
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Uchenna Nwosu, the 2018 second-round selection, was finally able to make noise with the first sack of the game this past Sunday. In just 16 snaps (a criminally low number), he was incredibly effective. Up to playing roughly a quarter of the offensive snaps, Nwosu is going to continually see increased time on the field.
But the crown jewel here is Derwin James, the human highlight reel. Watch this play here, and you’ll see James beat the timing of the hand-off for a tackle for loss, cover a tight end down the field and bat the pass down, sack the quarterback, and make a textbook open field tackle. As a rookie in just his second game, he looks like one of the best safeties in the league. Gus Bradley needs to unleash the kid every week and let him affect all facets of the game.
You want stats? The trio of White, Nwosu, and James combined for these numbers against the Bills: 16 total tackles, two sacks, three tackles for loss, four passes defended, one interception, two quarterback hits.
In their second game ever, these three rookies were making an impact in almost every statistical category. The 2018 class has a presence on the field unlike than any other in Telesco’s tenure with the team, and is certainly one of the quickest to make their play felt. The future of the defense is bright in the hands of these players.