The Los Angeles Chargers draft Zion Johnson, Boston College OL, at #17 Overall

Boston College guard Zion Johnson was drafted #17 overall by the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday night’s Day 1 of the NFL Draft. Johnson becomes Boston College’s 21st player to be selected in the first round of the NFL Draft, and the 10th offensive lineman to do so. Chris Lindstrom was BC’s last player to do so, going to the Atlanta Falcons in 2019.

Johnson is a 6’3”, 312 lb. guard out of Bowie, MD, though he also has shown enough versatility to offer some time at center or tackle as well. Notably, he was taking many practice reps at center in the Reese’s Senior Bowl this year, the last frontier for him after a college career that saw him shift around to cover the Eagles’ needs. He has solid experience at tackle, but most view him as a guard long-term and many see him as the best guard in the class.

At Boston College, he performed so well that he made the all-ACC 2nd team in his freshman year despite only playing in 7 games, then earned all-ACC 3rd-team honors in his sophomore year while playing the whole season at LT. 2021 is when Johnson truly ascended to the player he is today, as the team captain became a first-team All-American and all-ACC 1st team as he returned to playing at the guard position.

With big hands and long arms, his strength gives him a leg up to dominate and he has the work ethic to back it up. Scouts have raved at how seriously he takes his craft and his no-quit attitude when it comes to self-improvement. That, combined with his massive frame and impressive raw strength, makes Zion Johnson the full package for an offensive linemen. He should be a starter in the NFL for a long time coming,