When you ask a Chargers fan who they are most excited to see play this season, you'll likely get a myriad of answers. Such is the indulgence of fans of a team loaded with star players like San Diego. Ladainian Tomlinson, one of the best athletes in all of sports, is an obvious choice. The fearless Philip Rivers, with all of his fire and bravado, is another popular candidate. And of course there are the freakish Shawne Merriman and Antonio Cromartie - two young players who have emerged as dominant defenders. But there is one player who sparks the interest of the devoted few who follow the team with a religious fervor. While slightly premature, there are some who secretly hope that this player fills the void in the middle of the field left by Junior. So who is the player that tickles a once forgotten place on Chargers fans' collective belly's? Who is this chosen one - the next great Chargers linebacker? That honor, nay...that duty, belongs to Anthony Waters.

A blown ACL in his left knee brought a disappointing halt to a promising career in the sport of football. Sidelined for practically his entire senior season, Anthony Waters felt the doubt creep in. He asked himself why he didn't make the jump to the NFL after his stellar junior year. He wondered if he would even be given a shot at the next level without being able to show pro scouts his true talents. Left with a choice between the life of a layperson and a life of glory, Waters dug deep and began the treacherous road towards recovery. After all, you only get one shot at being drafted into the National Football League.

Hard work paid off. The San Diego Chargers did their homework, saw the progress that Waters was making with his knee, and they rolled the dice in the third round. Luckily for Mr. Waters, those dice landed on five-three.

Fast forward a little bit. Anthony Waters is a member of the prestigious club that is the San Diego Chargers. Some things have changed, others have not. Waters is still doing what knows best: work. Still trying to get better, still fighting for a shot. Except now, the Chargers aren't just wondering what he'd look like in Bolts. They see him flying around, flashing the power and aggression a dog displays when he plays with his bone. Now the Chargers, and fans, are anxiously awaiting the moment this dog is unleashed. Just ask Head Coach Norv Turner, a man with a reputation with playing his young players:

"Well, he healthy. I'm not sure he was ever one hundred percent last year. And he's put a lot of time in, so I really believe he knows what to do. When we got a chance to see him last year, he was an extremely aggressive and physical player. So I think the combination of his health and having a better understanding of what we're doing, I think he's going to be all over the place in the preseason."

The first big hit Waters makes in a regular season game is going to get my heart pumping and my mind racing: is Anthony Waters the next great Chargers Middle Linebacker? Time will tell. But one thing is certain; I'm keeping my eye on number fifty three.

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This is how championship teams are built; You maximize every possible draft pick available to you, taking players that (depending on who you ask) could have gone much higher than where you took them.

AJ Smith and his front office team are extremely good at maximizing the value of their draft picks. In 2006 and 2007, they selected seven players who at some point in their college career or post-college career carried a first-round grade.


2006 NFL Draft

Round 1, Pick 19: Antonio Cromartie, CB
Round 2, Pick 50: Marcus McNeil, OT
Round 3, Pick 81: Charlie Whitehurst, QB

2007 NFL Draft

Round 1, Pick 30: Craig Davis, WR
Round 2, Pick 37: Eric Weddle, SS
Round 3, Pick 96: Anthony Waters, LB

2007 Supplemental Draft

Round 4: Paul Oliver, CB


Obviously Antonio Cromartie and Craig Davis carried first round draft grades if the Chargers saw fit to take them with their first picks. Had Cromartie stayed in school for another season and played at a high level, he would likely have been a top 10 pick in the 2007 draft.

Marcus McNeill was one of the best offensive linemen in all college football for four years. Teams were worried about a back condition which is why he fell to the second round. McNeil has since gone on to make the Pro Bowl as a rookie in the NFL.

Charlie Whitehurst was one of the top Quarterbacks in ACC history. He had an up and down senior season, but there was some instability on the team and in the coaching ranks at Clemson so he is not fully to blame. Whitehurst at one point in his college career was projected to be a first round pick.

Paul Oliver was the top rated defensive back in the nation after completing his senior year in high school. A top cornerback in college, Oliver was academically ineligible to return to Georgia. Had be played another season at the level he is capable of, he would likely have been a first round pick in 2008.

There wasn't a true consensus as to whether or not Eric Weddle was projected as a bona fide first rounder, and that is solely due to his slightly less-than-elite athleticism. However, scouts league-wide were unanimous that the team who lands Weddle in the second round would be getting a steal. The Chargers did just that, and took him at pick 37. That is only 5 picks away from the first round, and there were a number of draft scouts that felt Weddle had a first round grade. His love for the game and ability to make plays across a variety of positions helped elevate his stock and if the Chargers had two picks in the first round of the 07 draft, they would have just as easily taken Weddle in the first.

Like Antonio Cromartie, Anthony Waters declared for the NFL draft following a college season in which he did not play due to injury. Waters was one of the best linebackers in the college ranks when healthy. Ask anybody who watched him play and they will tell you he is certainly a first-round talent, especially if you are a team that needs a starting inside linebacker. Fortunately for the Chargers, they just needed depth and landing Waters in the third round to play a backup role is the epitome of a steal.

The Chargers and AJ Smith are becoming what Ozzie Newsome built the Baltimore Ravens into; A Super Bowl team filled with extremely talented players acquired almost exclusively through the draft.

san diego chargers

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Look, I am satisfied with the San Diego Chargers' draft class right now, because I think we addressed all our major needs and did so with some talented players who have great character. I like the speed we have in Craig Davis, I like Eric Weddle's versatility and instincts, I like Anthony Waters' size and aggression, I think our tight ends Chandler and Naanee bring some things to the table, and I think Brandon Siler could be a steal from the seventh round. Like I said, I'm happy with what we were able to do in the draft.

But I look at some teams and the class they drafted and I have to drool a little bit when I imagine what their players would look like in Bolts. And one in particular has me a bit jealous. Even though I never thought in my life I would ever be jealous of the San Fransico 49ers, they were able to put together an extremely impressive draft.

San Francisco Rd Sel# Player Pos. Ht. Wt. School 1 11 Willis, Patrick ILB 6-1 240 Mississippi 1 28 Staley, Joe OT 6-5 302 Central Michigan 3 76 Hill, Jason WR 6-0 210 Washington State 3 97 McDonald, Ray DT 6-3 281 Florida 4 104 Moore, Jay DE 6-5 276 Nebraska 4 126 Goldson, Dashon FS 6-2 202 Washington 4 135 Cohen, Joe DT 6-2 313 Florida 5 147 Brown, Tarell CB 5-11 192 Texas 6 186 Clayton, Thomas RB 5-10 218 Kansas State

You could take the 49ers draft class, and swap them with the Chargers draft class, and there wouldn't be any argument from Charger fans. I mean, look at what the niners did...the positions they addressed, and it would seem that they stole AJ Smith's draft notebook.

In the first round, the Niners took the top Linebacker in the draft in Patrick Willis, and they traded up to get a top Offensive Tackle in Joe Staley. Willis would have looked fantastic in Bolts, and Staley could have been groomed to take over right tackle from Shane Olivea if (when?) Olivea moves inside to guard.

Jason Hill is a deep-threat wide receiver, exactly what the Chargers were looking for in the draft. Ray McDonald would have been great depth at defensive end, playing behind Luis Castillo.

Speaking of defensive end, Jay Moore would have been some more great defensive end depth behind Igor Olshansky. Goldson is a free safety, and while it would have been much later in the draft than fans would have preferred, getting a safety who would eventually start was a prioirty for the Chargers, and the 49ers drafted one who will be given that opportunity.

Joe Cohen is a defensive tackle who could have been groomed to play nose guard behind all-pro Jamal Williams. Tarell Brown brings nice size for the cornerback position and was a bit overshadowed in his career playing at Texas. Thomas Clayton had a nice senior bowl and is a power runner who could have been a nice eventual replacement for Michael Turner.

Looking at the 49ers, they run a very similar system to the Chargers with their attacking 34 defense and their offensive system implemented by Norv Turner. They need similar players to what the Chargers have, and so it is no surprise that they were scouting many of the same players the Chargers were. While they drafted much higher in each round than San Diego did, it is still fun to imagine what players around the league would fit in San Diego perfectly.


san diego chargers

Extremely excited to see what Anthony Waters can do on the football field. Its guys like this that make training camp and the preseason mean so much for me as an observer; even though some fans consider the preseason a waste of time.

Anthony Waters was a top rated inside linebacker before the 2006 college season. He blew out his ACL which caused him to miss the entire year and which led to his inevitable slip to the third round come draft day.

Now as a member of an extremely young and talented linebacking corp here in San Diego, Waters has the opportunity to contribute and possibly push for some starting time once he heals up (and he is very close to 100%)

"I feel pretty good about how I’m picking up the defense,” Waters said. “I still make little mistakes here and there, but that’s kind of expected. This defense is new to me. Cooper and Wilhelm are pretty good about helping the young guys out. I can ask them anything I need to. I play hard, I play fast and I play physical. If you’re doing those three things, someone is going to notice you. There’s a lot of talent on this team. I don’t have to do too much. I can just work hard and be a part of it."

We previewed Waters earlier in the year, and what stands out the most about him is his versatility. It would not surprise me one bit to see Waters play both outside and inside linebacker. He bears resemblance in his style of player to Brian Urlacher, and Coach Rivera knows a little something about that guy.

Read: Waters out-working the competition

Paul Strelow from TheState.com reports the results of former Clemson Tigers Linebacker Anthony Waters at his recent Pro Day:

In his first and only timed test for NFL scouts, former linebacker Anthony Waters ran a 4.62-second 40-yard-dash time during his individual workout Tuesday morning, about a tenth of a second higher than his pre-injury best.

Waters (6-foot-3, 240 pounds), one of the few linebackers in this year's crop who can play inside for teams that have either 3-4 or 4-3 schemes, is six months removed from surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

He skipped the NFL Combine in February and Clemson’s March 13 pro-day workout while rehabilitating.

Representatives from 18 teams were on hand for the workout, including Carolina defensive coordinator Mike Trgovac.

"If he were a mid-rounder, there wouldn't have been as many people show up," said Michael Brown, one of Waters' agents.

Waters did eight position drills and the vertical jump (34½ inches) but skipped other routine running drills. He has interviews scheduled with San Diego, Dallas, Saint Louis and the New York Jets before the April 28-29 draft.

4.6 speed is very good for a player of Waters' size. 6' 3" 240 lbs is the prototype for Inside Linebacker in the Chargers 34 defense. This defense places an emphasis on speed and versatility from their linebackers, and Waters can play both the outside and inside positions.

While the Chargers are pretty set at linebacker, adding Waters in the third round would give them Baltimore Ravens-type depth at the position. Cooper, Wilhelm, Dobbins, and Waters would make up an outstanding young corp of middle linebackers.

Read up on Anthony Waters at Rookiepedia. The guys at Rookiepedia have contacted me and let me know they have a brand-new draft prospect site, and it is coming along nicely. If you are a fan of the NFL draft, Rookiepedia would be a nice resource for you.

Want to see video of Waters' play? Check out this highlight film. He is certainly a guy that people should be aware of. He has a scary combination of physical tools and looks to be completely healthy from his ACL injury. The Chargers are bringing him in for a look-see, and they will likely be impressed, especially considering Buddy Nix's fondness for the Atlantic Coast Conference.