BOLTS’ TRANQUILL SHOWS GM SKILLS
He was the Chargers’ most outstanding rookie last season, Drue Tranquill’s contributions extending off the field and beyond the final game.
It was during the 2020 draft that the young linebacker’s work again had a noticeable impact on the defense.
“One of the first questions scouts and coaches ask you is, ‘If you could take one (college) teammate of yours with you to the NFL, who would it be and why?’ ” Tranquill explained. “I kid you not, my answer every time last year was Alohi.”
In the sixth round in April, following Tranquill’s advice, the Chargers selected safety Alohi Gilman, another addition from Notre Dame.
Gilman is expected to contribute immediately on special teams, where the Chargers have to replace several departed veterans, including safety Adrian Phillips, fullback Derek Watt and linebacker Nick Dzubnar.
Gilman also eventually could work himself into a role on defense, in packages that beef up the secondary. Coach Anthony Lynn even likened Gilman to Phillips, who went from being undrafted to being an All-pro.
“This guy reminds me a lot of A.P., just the way he carries himself, the way he goes about playing the football game,” Lynn said. “With the versatility that he has shown on the field, we believe he can fill that role.” Gilman is joining a secondary that appears formidable, at least following an offseason program scrambled by the COVID-19 pandemic and a month removed from the scheduled start of training camp.
The Chargers are deep and skilled throughout the back end of their defense, particularly with the free agent signing of Chris Harris Jr., one of the league’s best slot cornerbacks.
“We definitely should be in the top five,” Harris said. “If not, we didn’t accomplish our goal. That would be a failure for us. With all the talent that we’ve got. … we should be dominating.”
The Chargers also have past postseason award winners in safety Derwin James and cornerbacks Casey Hayward and Desmond King.
They spent their secondround pick a year ago on Nasir Adderley, a playmaking safety whose rookie season was limited to four games because of a hamstring injury.
“It’s just all on paper,” James said the secondary’s robust potential. “We gotta go out there and show we are the best. Right now, it looks good, but we gotta go out there and perform.” For a rookie such as Gilman, the chance to demonstrate his ability basically has been nonexistent so far. He has spent the past several months quarantining at home in Hawaii, participating like most NFL players in little more than Zoom meetings.
Eventually, he’ll have the opportunity to share the field with his new teammates, a group that includes fellow former Notre Dame defenders in Tranquill and linemen Isaac Rochell and Jerry Tillery.
Gilman suggested any comparisons between his style and what Tranquill displayed last season are not inaccurate.
“Drue and I have similar skill sets,” he said. “We’re tough-nosed, grind people who work really hard and believe in ourselves. … To get another opportunity to play with him is amazing.”