Chargers News: Enticing DL Draft Pick Open To Playing Anywhere On Defensive Front

It sounds like he's quite flexible.

Nov 18, 2023; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide defensive linemen Tim Smith and Justin Eboigbe put in work. / Gary Cosby Jr.-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Chargers started off their 204 NFL draft run by prioritizing offensive, first with protection for rocket-armed Pro Bowl quarterback Justin Herbert in the form of 6'9" former Notre Dame Fighting Irish offensive tackle Joe Alt with the No. 5 pick, and subsequently by equipping Herbert with a promising new target in ex-Georgia Bulldogs wide receiver Ladd McConkey.

That's when things got interesting, as new head coach Jim Harbaugh and new general manager Joe Hortiz pivoted to the other side of the field.

One of the most intriguing new picks is former Alabama Crimson Tide defensive tackle Justin Eboigbe, selected with the No. 105 pick in the fourth round Saturday.

Eboigbe, all 6'4" and 297 pounds of him sounded amenable to lining up anywhere on the defensive front for the team this fall, writes Eric Smith of Chargers.com.

"Honestly, it doesn't even matter," Eboigbe said. "If I can be on the field, it doesn't matter, I can play every position... I know one thing, whatever helps the team — whether that's at three-technique, five-technique, shade, it doesn't matter — as long as I can be able to effectively help the team, I'm all for it," Eboigbe added.

The 2023 All-SEC First Teamer went on to detail his burgeoning relationship with his new head coach. When Harbaugh was still the head coach of the Michigan Wolverines, his club beat Eboigbe's Crimson Tide by a touchdown, 27-20, in the Rose Bowl during what wound up being both Harbaugh and Eboigbe's final season in the NCAA.

"He didn't recruit me but I had a lot of familiarity with him on New Year's Day, that Rose Bowl Game," Eboigbe said. "Didn't have the outcome [we wanted], but the success that he has had in the league and in college, there's no one that you'd want to play for any more than him."

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