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Hats4Bats -> RE: Free Agency 2021 (3/19/2021 12:26:53 PM)
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I like this guy...LAMP!
Can Forrest Lamp be the team’s ‘surprise starter’ in 2020?
The team’s 2017 second-round pick still hasn’t gotten the chance he deserves.
By Michael Peterson@ZoneTracks Jun 29, 2020, 10:09am PDT
Only three things are certain in this life: Death, taxes, and me jumping on Forrest Lamp content like a 10-year old on a slice of red velvet cake.
What’s the content, Michael? Well, it’s Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski listing Lamp as the Chargers’ “surprise starter” for the 2020 season.
At what position, Michael? Left tackle, the spot he SHOULD be the front-runner at. People truly forget just how good he was at that spot in college as a FOUR-YEAR STARTER.
Sobleski was one of the few who didn’t which is why he brought the receipts on this one.
“Too much of an emphasis is placed on body type and arm length when evaluating offensive linemen. The quality of a prospect’s film is often overlooked when he doesn’t fit a certain mold. The Los Angeles Chargers’ Forrest Lamp serves as a perfect example. Lamp played as well or better than any tackle prospect in the 2017 draft class. The Western Kentucky product ranked first overall in pass-blocking efficiency during his senior season, per Pro Football Focus.”
Many instantly pegged Lamp to transition from tackle to guard before he ever got to the NFL because of his lack of of ideal arm length, which has always been a load of crap to me. One of the first things I point to when I say Lamp should be a tackle is New England Patriots left tackle Isaiah Wynn, who was drafted by the Pats in the first round back in 2018. Wynn is terribly undersized for an NFL OT at 6’2, but that hasn’t stopped New England from playing him there.
There are those who point to the fact that Wynn played much better competition at Georgia in the SEC than Lamp did at Western Kentucky. Well, Lamp got to face off against the Tide as a senior in 2016 and it was a glorious showing. Lamp shutdown an entire front of future NFL players and he made it look easy. It’s some of the greatest offensive line film I’ve ever seen, so you can understand why it’s infuriating to see him not get a chance at the position he knows the best.
One of my biggest fears is seeing Lamp sign elsewhere after not getting the chance he deserves with the Chargers. The coaching staff seems loyal to a fault with Dan Feeney, who has graded out as the worst starting offensive lineman on the team over the last two seasons. The Chargers already re-vamped the right side of the line and I think they need to do the full re-vamp of the left, meaning Lamp should fit in somewhere.
Alas, this certainly not going to be what transpires, but one can dream, right?
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