The third week of college football is here, which means we are back with another edition of the Scouting Notebook.
The Scouting Notebook will feature prospects to keep an eye on throughout the day. While some may think it’s too early to start talking about the 2024 NFL draft, there’s never a bad time to talk about the future of the Chargers.
Buy Chargers TicketsWith that being said, here are a handful of prospects to watch for in Week 3.
CB Decamerion Richardson, Mississippi State
As long as Brandon Staley is the head coach, he will always look to add cornerbacks to the team. And he could turn to Mississippi State, the school that has had the last three No. 1 corners drafted in the first three rounds (Cameron Dantzler, Martin Emerson and Emmanuel Forbes).
Standing at 6-foot-2 and 195 pounds, Richardson is a lengthy corner with the speed and athleticism to turn and stick with receivers down the field. He will have a good test on Saturday facing the talented wideout in LSU’s Malik Nabers.
In 2022, Richardson started opposite Forbes. He made 85 tackles on the year with three pass deflections and a tackle for loss and he returned a blocked kick from Forbes for a touchdown against Texas A&M.
-Gavino
TE Ben Sinnott, Kansas State
While the tight end class is nowhere near as prolific as it was a year ago, there’s still plenty of talent to be found in the 2024 crop. That conversation starts and ends with Georgia superstar Brock Bowers, but Sinnott is likely the top senior at the position at this juncture.
When the Wildcats travel to Missouri on Saturday, Sinnott will have plenty of matchups with potential NFL talent. Missouri has a safety, Jaylon Carlies, who could be a Day 3 pick, and defensive lineman Darius Robinson is a rock-solid run defender on both the Shrine and Senior Bowl watchlists. As a well-rounded player with plus ability as a blocker and receiver, the way Sinnott stands up to this competition will be of note to NFL scouts around the country.
-Alex
DT Nazir Stackhouse, Georgia
Austin Johnson is set to be a free agent this season, which means the Chargers could turn to the early rounds of the draft to find his replacement. Stackhouse is a potential option.
Playing alongside 2023 first-round pick Jalen Carter, Stackhouse had solid season for the Bulldogs. He racked up 33 tackles, three tackles for loss, 14 quarterback hurries and one blocked kick.
The 6-foot-3 and 330-pounder is stout against the run, possessing the power to push blockers into the backfield, the strength to take on double teams and the range to make plays away from the line of scrimmage.
-Gavino
TE Bryson Nesbit, North Carolina
At 6-foot-5 and 230 pounds, Nesbit is built like a modern receiving tight end. He plays like one, too, with precision route running and short-area quickness, making him a valuable threat for Drake Maye. He’s not a phenomenal run blocker due to his frame, but he does play with good effort, even if he’s overwhelmed by more powerful players at the line of scrimmage.
Against Minnesota, I’ll be interested to see how Nesbit performs with safety Tyler Nubin roaming the middle of the field. Nubin is one of the top senior safeties in the 2024 class and likely would have been a mid-round pick in 2023 had he chosen to declare.
TE Mark Redman, San Diego State
This week’s edition is tight-end heavy, rightfully so. The Chargers didn’t address the position this past offseason, and with Gerald Everett set to be a free agent after 2023, there’s no reason they won’t add one or two next offseason.
Redman is off to a great start this season, as he has 12 catches for 102 yards, two touchdowns through two games. For someone of his size (6-foot-6 and 250 pounds, he is a very smooth athlete with fluidity as a route runner and has good ball skills.
Facing a ranked Oregon State team, a good performance would help his draft stock.
-Gavino
TE Brevyn Spann-Ford, Minnesota
On the other side of the North Carolina-Minnesota matchup is another tight end worth watching, as Spann-Ford will have an intriguing matchup against Tar Heel linebacker Cedric Gray. North Carolina pass rushers Kaimon Rucker and Desmond Evans are also worthy foes for Spann-Ford in the run game.
A sixth-year senior who’s been on draft radars since 2020, Spann-Ford is a 6-foot-7 and 270-pound behemoth at tight end. With that frame, you’d expect him to be an incredibly proficient blocker, and Minnesota has indeed primarily deployed him that way in their neolithic offense. Spann-Ford is also a talented receiver in contested catch situations, however, which adds some upside despite his struggles in creating separation. His high center of gravity, which affects both his pad level as a blocker and stiffness as a receiver, will be one of the major knocks during his pre-draft process.
-Alex
CB Bo Melton
Michael Davis is a pending free agent and JC Jackson’s future with the Chargers remains uncertain despite his return from a ruptured patellar tendon. That could make a defensive back pick enticing for LA in any round of the draft, but if at least one of Davis and Jackson return in 2024, that pick is likely to be further down the board.
Melton, the brother of Packers receiver Bo Melton, is an exceptional athlete despite his average size. While he’s a willing run defender, he will need to improve as a tackler in the pros. Los Angeles has been willing to take chances on guys like that before – over the past few seasons, the Chargers have placed a higher emphasis on speed in the secondary.
-Alex
