Chargers selected Washington State LB Daiyan Henley with the No. 85 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Henley (6’1/225) worked his way up the college ranks, spending 2017-2021 at Nevada where he was named Second Team All-Mountain West Conference before transferring as a graduate to Washington State. He made a seamless transition to the Power Five level, earning First Team All-Pac-12 recognition while becoming the first Butkus Award finalist in Wazzu history. A textbook finisher thanks to his 33” arms, Henley led the P5 with a 90.3 PFF tackling grade thanks to his relentless motor and pristine 5.2% missed tackle rate last year. He ran a 95th percentile 4.54s 40-yard dash and has had demonstrable success in coverage, holding opponents to a 39.0 NFL Passer Rating when targeted and picking off four passes in 2021. He can sometimes make bad reads and needs to keep his pad level low when engaging blockers. However Henley has shown the ability to be a complete linebacker, be it bringing pressure off the edge with ferocity, crashing down on run plays or, dropping into coverage. A physical middle linebacker whose play strength far outweighs his size, Henley has legitimate NFL starter potential.
