With the draft just one week away, Matt "Money" Smith and Chris Hayre had NFL Draft analyst for The Athletic Dane Brugler on the latest episode of Chargers Weekly. Brugler answered fan questions about the draft including who he thinks the Chargers will take at pick 17, if they will make a trade in the draft and more.
Download and subscribe to the Chargers Podcast Network wherever you listen to podcasts. Some of the questions and answers from the latest edition of Chargers Weekly are below.
Who do you think [the Chargers] should draft, best available or draft a need at #17? -@92getherdone
Brugler: "Most team draft boards are 125, 150 [players] they are not these extensive boards that those of us on the outside are looking at. I think their first-round board will be set up, but with need in mind, with their ideal targets. Knowing who's going to be there, who has a chance to be there. You always care about need, obviously especially with a first-round pick. You want a guy that can come in and impact your team, but football is a game of attrition as well. This is a five-year commitment, not who's going to help you right away. It's something that you need the short term and long term in mind and above all you want the guy that impacts your roster the most. You can make an argument for a lot of different directions, but who is going to help put points on the board, wins in the win column, that's who you need to go after..."
Are [the Chargers] taking a receiver in round one? -@ja.malloy
Brugler: "The first round needs to be reserved for the player that's going to best impact your roster. So, if that ends up being a receiver, a speed element, a guy that's going to help stretch out the defense then absolutely, why not? So, yes a little bit of a luxury pick when you have talent at the position already, but a chance to add another weapon for your young quarterback, a chance to make you offense even more explosive, why is that a bad thing…if [Alabama wide receiver] Jameson Williams is there, I love that fit. I think that'd be a lot of fun. Justin to Jameson, I mean it'd be fireworks…"
Tom Telesco has never traded back, could this be the year that changes? -@rogue.panda619
Brugler: "I think you could make the argument that's something they should look at and very strongly consider without having that second-round pick, being able to recoup that second rounder would be big. I think a lot of it depends on, you know you're not making this move now obviously, you're not making this before the picks start. As you see the first 16 picks play out, say they are targeting [Northern Iowa offensive lineman] Trevor Penning for example or say they want a right tackle, but four tackles come off the board in the first 15 picks, all of a sudden maybe you are a little more open to moving back. Maybe at that point you want to target a wide receiver, or a corner and you feel good about the wide receivers or corners that will be available at 25, 26, wherever you're moving back to…I think a big part of this conversation really depends on who's going to be there at pick number 17 for you..."
Are [the Chargers] getting a backup RB somewhere in the draft? -@jaywest1017
Brugler: "We are going to see a couple running backs go round two or top 60 with [Iowa State running back] Breece Hall, [Michigan State running back] Kenneth Walker, [Texas A&M running back] Isaiah Spiller, who will probably fit somewhere in the third round. But for the most part the sweet spot for running backs in this draft is going to be the fourth, fifth, sixth round. We are going to see a ton of these guys fly off the board and I think it depends on what direction the Chargers want to go. Do they want to go with a player that's similar to an Austin Ekeler, where you can trust him out of the backfield in terms of his hands and running routes or do they want more of a complement, more of a power element, a guy that's going to be a bruiser between the tackles? Because this draft has both, you know if they want more of that interior presence, a guy like Dameon Pierce from Florida, 5'9'' and a half, 220 pounds, runs with tremendous energy, lowers his pads and he's just a violent runner and he does not apologize for it and you also love how dependable he is…"
