Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
According to Michael Gehlken of utsandiego.com, the San Diego Chargers had a meeting with former Missouri Western State running back Michael Hill. Hill is coming off a season in which he led Division II in rushing yards and finished second in Division II player of the year voting.
Gehlken said “For the third straight draft, a running back could join the Chargers in the late rounds. Michael Hill is an option if one does The former Missouri Western State running back visited the team facility last week.”
San Diego has five running backs on their roster which includes the trio of starter Ryan Mathews, Danny Woodhead and Ronnie Brown, who will be the team’s primary options to run the ball in 2013. The Chargers also have former Michigan State Spartans player Edwin Baker to go along with Fozzy Whittaker, both of whom did not play in a game last season.
The 5-foot-10, 210-pound Hill had over 1,300 rushing yards in 2011 and ran for more than 2,000 yards to go along with 16 rushing touchdowns and three touchdown receptions in 2012.
San Diego has depth at the RB position heading into the NFL Draft, but Mathews is injury-prone and Woodhead does not have experience with starter’s attempts in a season. Brown’s days as a primary back appear to be behind him, so adding Hill could be an option for the front office.
San Diego ranked 27th in rushing yards, 31st in yards per attempt and last in rushing touchdowns in 2012, so they need to make improvements to their rushing attack in 2013.
According to CBS Sports, Hill ranks 399th among prospects and is not expected to be chosen in Thursday’s draft, but he averaged 4.9 yards per attempt in 2011 and 6.9 in 2012. While this was done in Division II football, it could still be enough to capture the attention of general managers.
