2012 NFL Draft: Why Ronnell Lewis Is Perfect Match in San Diego

There's been a big discussion as to whom the San Diego Chargers should take with their first round selection, but in the second round no player is a better match than University of Oklahoma linebacker Ronnell Lewis.

Assuming the Chargers do take an offensive lineman in the first round, Lewis can be a value pick in the second round. He may not be an elite pass rusher like some of the other prospects but he has great instincts and could develop into that role with time.

San Diego's prayers can't be answered with the first player taken so selecting value deep in the draft will be crucial. Here are four reasons Lewis is a perfect match with the Chargers.

Big Hitter

Lewis has quite the collection of bone crushing hits and the Chargers need a guy with that type of mentality.

Arizona State University linebacker Vontaze Burfict receives a lot more hype for his violent hits but his downside is that he has a bad attitude. With Lewis, the Chargers get that same aggressiveness but without the attitude. How could you go wrong with that?

Special Teams Star

Lewis, or "the hammer" as he is known by Sooners fans, played like a heat seeking missile on special teams and the highlight video above shows that quite clearly with his two monstrous hits during a game against Stanford.

As I mentioned before, Lewis isn't an elite pass rusher right now but he is more than ready to come in and do wonders on special teams right away.

With a headhunter like Lewis covering kickoffs and punts, the Chargers can hopefully lose their bad rep on special teams.

Versatility

With his balance of speed and strength, Lewis is capable of playing defensive end or outside linebacker in the NFL.

Versatility is a quality the Chargers look for in a pass rusher. The ability to rush the passer or drop back in coverage at any given moment is a plus at the next level and Lewis could learn to do both very well.

The only guy the Chargers have with that type of ability is Shaun Phillips and so far he's done pretty well.

Value

Lewis isn't a Nick Perry or a Courtney Upshaw, but for a second-round pick he's not all that bad.

Sure the Chargers could use their first-round pick to take one of those guys but Lewis provides value with a later pick.

This year's draft has some good offensive linemen and it may be too tempting for the Chargers to pass on shoring up their line in 2012.