One Bruin doesn’t have to go very far to start his professional career.
The Los Angeles Chargers selected UCLA football defensive lineman Otito Ogbonnia with the No. 160 overall pick in the 5th round of the 2022 NFL Draft on Saturday. Ogbonnia is the third Bruin to leave the board, following in the footsteps of Denver Broncos tight end Greg Dulcich and Green Bay Packers offensive lineman Sean Rhyan.
Ogbonnia is the second UCLA defensive lineman to be selected in the last two drafts, with Osa Odighizuwa going to the Dallas Cowboys in the third round in 2021.
The Chargers have now picked three hometown players in the past five drafts, selecting center Scott Quessenberry in 2018 and running back Joshua Kelley in 2020.
Ogbonnia is one of the few players to have appeared in every game of Chip Kelly’s four-year-old era, occupying a stable role since the start of his first season. The Houston native had more tackles his first year on the program than he did in the next two, remaining a consistent contributor throughout each of his first three campaigns.
Despite not being able to earn All-Pac-12 honors from conference coaches, Ogbonnia made PFF’s All-Pac-12 second team in 2021, a career year for the 6-foot-4, 320-pound lineman at all levels. . Ogbonnia had 30 tackles, 5.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, a forced fumble and an assist defending his senior year before heading to the Reese’s Senior Bowl and the NFL Scouting Combine.
Beyond the grill, Ogbonnia has experience as a weightlifter and high-level shot put competitor. Ogbonnia won the 2019 Pan Am U20 Shot Put Championships in Costa Rica with a mark of 20.72 meters and then competed for UCLA Athletics at the NCAA level. In the weight room, Ogbonnia benched 440 pounds and squatted 683, earning him the bench press win among defensive linemen at the combine with 29 reps.
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Ogbonnia, who suffered a lower-body injury for much of the 2021 campaign, injured his right hamstring during a drill later in the combine. By the time UCLA’s pro day rolled around a few weeks later, Ogbonnia was healthy enough to run a 5.31-second 40-yard sprint and participate in positional drills.
Los Angeles ranked bottom of the NFL in pass rush and forward disruption in 2021, and they’ve taken several steps to address that issue this offseason. The Chargers traded All-Pro Edge rusher Kahlil Mack to line up opposite Pro Bowler Joey Bosa, then signed veterans Austin Johnson and Sebastian Joseph-Day to play inside.
The Chargers picked Boston College guard/tackle Zion Johnson, Baylor safety JT Woods and Texas A&M Isaiah Spiller with their first three picks of the weekend, making Ogbonnia the first rookie in their first seven.
Ogbonnia was the 11th defensive tackle to hear his name and the third in the Pac-12 after Arizona State’s DJ Davidson and Stanford’s Thomas Booker.
READ ALL NFL BRUINS PROFILE ON OTITO OGBONNIA
Safety Quentin Lake, safety Qwuantrezz Knight, running back Brittain Brown and offensive tackle Alec Anderson are the highest UCLA products remaining on the board, with others also in the pool.
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