Mike Clay is an NFL and fantasy football analyst at ESPN and spends a lot of time going through algorithms and formulas to project player and team stats prior to the regular season.
Recently, Clay revealed his defensive projections for the upcoming season.
Let’s take a look at how he believes the Chargers players will fare in Year 2 under defensive coordinator Jesse Minter.
Defensive tackle
Da’Shawn Hand: 540 snaps, 37 tackles, 2 sacks
Otito Ogbonnia: 507 snaps, 39 tackles, 1.1 sacks
Teair Tart: 432 snaps, 33 tackles, 2.1 sacks
Naquan Jones: 356 snaps, 30 tackles, 1.7 sacks
Jamaree Caldwell: 270 snaps, 20 tackles, 1.3 sacks
Scott Matlock: 108 snaps, 7 tackles, 0.2 sacks
Edge defender
Tuli Tuipulotu: 723 snaps, 42 tackles, 6.5 sacks
Khalil Mack: 605 snaps, 43 tackles, 7.0 sacks
Bud Dupree: 561 snaps, 31 tackles, 6.1 sacks
Kyle Kennard: 324 snaps, 22 tackles, 2.9 sacks
Caleb Murphy: 54 snaps, 4 tackles, 0.5 sacks
Linebacker
Daiyan Henley: 1,004 snaps, 147 tackles, 1.9 sacks, 1.3 interceptions
Junior Colson: 443 snaps, 60 tackles, 0.9 sacks, 0.4 interceptions
Denzel Perryman: 313 snaps, 47 tackles, 0.6 sacks, 0.2 interceptions
Troy Dye: 162 snaps, 24 tackles, 0.4 sacks, 0.1 interceptions
Cornerback
Tarheeb Still: 918 snaps, 74 tackles, 1.7 interceptions, 0.3 sacks
Cam Hart: 648 snaps, 50 tackles, 1.5 interceptions, 0.2 sacks
Donte Jackson: 464 snaps, 28 tackles, 0.7 interceptions
Benjamin St-Juste: 432 snaps, 36 tackles, 0.6 interceptions
Ja’Sir Taylor: 162 snaps, 12 tackles, 0.3 interceptions
Safety
Derwin James: 1,062 snaps, 102 tackles, 2.7 sacks, 2.3 interceptions
Alohi Gilman: 1,015 snaps, 90 tackles, 0.2 sacks, 2.1 interceptions
Elijah Molden: 756 snaps, 75 tackles, 0.1 sacks, 2.0 interceptions
Tony Jefferson: 54 snaps, 6 tackles