With the San Diego Chargers in need of depth at the interior of the offensive line, one draft prospect to keep an eye on is UCLA guard Xavier Su'a-Filo.
He measured in at just over 6-foot-4 and 308 pounds at the scouting combine this week, so Su'a-Filo has decent size. He played left tackle his freshman season, and switched to guard for his final two seasons with the Bruins, so he brings versatility.
Su'a-Filo has played in zone and man blocking schemes -- the Chargers run a mix of both. Su'a-Filo is agile for his size, able to get out and pull around the edge in the run game.
ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. ranks Su’a-Filo as the No. 4 offensive guard in this year’s draft.
Su'a-Filo says one of the players in the NFL he patterns his game after is New England offensive guard Logan Mankins.
"He's a bad-ass," Su’a-Filo said. "He started from Day 1 in New England, and I love how nasty he is, something about his game that I really try to implement. Other guys like Mike Iupati and Trent Williams, are really mean and nasty like that and that's what I'm trying to be like."
Su'a-Filo played for Jim Mora at UCLA, so he should be familiar with how coaches run their program in the NFL. Su'a-Filo, whose nickname is X, said he's someone who leads with his play on the field.
“I wasn't much of a rah-rah guy,” he said. “I like to do my leading by example. But anytime I had to speak, I wasn't afraid to do it. In the locker room, I tried to be a leader. I was voted team captain the last two years and tried to give an example to my teammates, especially our young offensive line, how our coaches expect things to be done and how we're going to be successful.”