Kavell Conner Has Big Shoes to Fill Following Manti Te'o Injury

The San Diego Chargers defense, one of 12 in the league to have allowed less than 1,000 total yards through three games this season, just lost its leading tackler, Manti Te'o. Michael Gehlken of U-T San Diego reported Monday night that the Chargers inside linebacker will miss "extensive time" with a foot fracture suffered Sunday against the Buffalo Bills. 

That report had not yet been announced by the team as of Monday night. 

It's a hard pill to swallow for a San Diego team that has called upon its disruptive defense, graded at No. 5 in the NFL by Pro Football Focus (subscription required), in situations such as the 22-10 Week 2 win over division powerhouse Seattle, a victory that put the rest of the league on notice. 

Te'o, who leads the Chargers in tackles with 19, has been at the forefront of this unit in his second year. He was particularly effective against the Bills on Sunday, notching 10 tackles for the second time in his professional career (the first was in the final week of the 2013 season against the Kansas City Chiefs). 

After finishing last season with 61 tackles, Te'o was on pace for just over 100 in 2014. He was all over the field Sunday and was particularly effective against the run; on four of his 10 tackles, he held C.J Spiller and Fred Jackson to gains of eight or fewer yards.

After Week 3, he is ranked the ninth-best inside linebacker in the league by Pro Football Focus.

Bill Wippert/Associated Press

This is the second injury Te'o has suffered to his right foot and also sprained his left foot this past preseason. The first injury to his right foot required offseason surgery. This is the second consecutive season where Te'o will miss multiple weeks.

Though the Chargers already have a second-round pick invested in Te'o, they saw an opportunity when the Indianapolis Colts let inside linebacker Kavell Conner walk in free agency this offseason. San Diego signed Conner to a three-year deal, and prior to Te'o's injury, he was listed behind Donald Butler on the depth chart. 

Per Gehlken, Conner is expected to start in place of Te'o rather than Reggie Walker, who is listed behind Te'o on the depth chart. 

Can Conner replace the production that the Chargers have been getting from Te'o?

	Height	Weight	Wingspan	Career-High Tackles/Game
Manti Te'o	6'1"	241 lbs	65"	10
Kavell Conner	6'0"	242 lbs	65.5"	18

Physically very similar to Te'o, Conner wasn't hailed as quite as big of a playmaker coming out of college at Clemson, where he played on the outside. He was drafted in the seventh round in 2010. Still, he's had his share of production, including a 104-tackle season in 2011.

That's the year he posted his insane career-high 18 tackles in one game, highlighted in the table above, against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Oct. 3. T

While Conner has pass production going for him, it's unlikely he'll be as versatile as Te'o has proven to be in his young career. 

The Chargers will miss the ability they have with Te'o to utilize his broad skill set against the run and also when dropping into coverage against the pass in their 3-4 defensive front. 

Bleacher Report's Christopher Hansen also noted how much more comfortable Te'o was looking in space this season, a sure sign of his continued development. 

The timetable for Teo's return is not currently known, just that he will be out "multiple weeks" per Gehlken. San Diego next faces the winless Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 4, the New York Jets and their one-two punch rush attack in Week 5, the Oakland Raiders in Week 6 and division rival Kansas City in Week 7 before traveling to Denver on a short week. 

Teo's defensive leadership and tackling prowess would be especially useful against New York, but it's unlikely he's back in two weeks. The matchups against the Chiefs and Broncos will prove crucial for a Chargers team attempting to take the lead in the AFC West.