Anthony Waters blew out his ACL in last season’s opener for the Clemson Tigers and that’s why he was available in the 3rd round.  Waters is the classic middle linebacker as he’s a much better run defender than a pass defender.  He stands 6′2″ and weighs 240 pounds so he’s big enough to take on linemen in the box.  He also runs a 4.65 40 so he’s fast enough to make plays sideline to sideline as long as he’s kept clean by his defensive line.  In 36 games (22 starts) at Clemson, Waters made 217 tackles, 22.5 tackles for a loss, had 3.5 sacks and broke up 8 passes.  Waters might not be ready to start for the Chargers soon, but he will in the future as long as his knee holds up.

The Chargers really felt a need to improve their secondary so they paid a high price in draft picks to move up and select safety Eric Weddle.  Eric Weddle was an outstanding player at Utah, but many experts don’t project him to be anything more than a backup and special teams player.  Weddle runs a 4.5 40 and he’s 5′11″, 205 pounds so he has the measureables to succeed.  He also has played corner in college and he was an outstanding player on special teams.  In 48 games (45 starts) at Utah, Weddle made 277 tackles, broke up 23 passes, had 18 interceptions (148 return yards), forced 9 fumbles and recovered 6 fumbles.  The Chargers might have overpaid to get Weddle, but I have a feeling he will be a good player for them.

The Chargers labeled WR as a big weakness on their team and they were determined to take one early in this draft.  Davis has nice size (6′1″, 204) and speed (4.4 40), but he’s been very injury prone and he never was considered the #1 WR at LSU.  Davis always seems to have a nagging injury but that could be because he’s fearless going over the middle.  He also has excellent hands.  At LSU, Davis played in 44 games (25 starts) and he caught 141 passes for 2,117 yards (15.0 avg) with 7 TD grabs.  Davis also can return punts which adds to his value to the Chargers.  The Chargers might have selected Davis a little bit too high, but he fills a huge need for them.