What should Chargers expect from Bosa's rookie season?

Matt Williamson is a former scout for the Cleveland Browns, and spent the last 10 years at ESPN as a scout and co-host of "The Football Today Podcast."

The contract impasse between Joey Bosa and the San Diego Chargers has finally been resolved, and the 2016 third overall selection is now with his new team. So what did San Diego envision Bosa could do for them when they drafted him, and what's a reasonable expectation for his rookie season?

Considering San Diego’s base defensive front is a 3-4, it was rather curious when they drafted Bosa. As much as any defensive lineman in the draft, Bosa looked like the prototypical 4-3 end considering his size, strength at the point of attack, and pass-rushing prowess.

However, upon further thought and review, it just shows that “Base Defense” in today’s NFL is really a respective team’s nickel or dime package, whichever they prefer. And in that way of thinking, Bosa could align in his customary defensive end spot in a four-man front. But maybe more likely (and while adding value) Bosa could play the role of Michael Bennett in Seattle and use his talents as an interior pass-rusher in these situations, which would allow the Chargers to have Melvin Ingram and Jeremiah Attaochu rush off the edge, which then gets the most pass-rushing talent on the field at one time.

Even though that sub package defense has become the norm in the NFL, the Chargers are still going to play plenty of snaps with three defensive linemen and four linebackers on the field together. In these instances, Bosa could become a wild card of sorts, a jack-of-all-trades. He's athletic enough to play on his feet and rush from a standup position off the edge, or roam around in an amoeba-like front to further confuse the offense. In fact, with a little more weight and time, Bosa could develop into an extremely athletic 3-4 defensive end. It looks like he has the body type to pull that off.

The fact is the Chargers just needed talent added to their front seven. The run defense in 2015 was horrific, and Bosa is a high-quality run defender. The pass-rush was lackluster, and Bosa can rush the passer and probably from many locations as mentioned above.

What should the Chargers expect from Bosa immediately, though? Bosa’s father was also a first-round pick, so Joey is a player who very much grew up around the game of football. He has a high football IQ and a strong work ethic to maximize his abilities and be the best player he possibly can. Still, he's significantly behind his teammates in terms of knowing the defense, his assignments, and responsibilities. However, as he learns those things - which shouldn’t take long as his position isn’t all that complex, comparatively - Bosa can still come in immediately and rush the passer. Maybe he doesn’t play a high number of snaps during the first month and is used selectively on third downs or clear passing situations. But still, in Week 1 he'll have enough knowledge to 1. Line up, and 2. Go get the quarterback.

Of course, if the Chargers change course and have Bosa play in the final preseason game, it'll be his first in-game professional football experience, and he isn’t a transcendent talent who can just walk on an NFL field and dominate. But even so, he should have some early-season impact as a pass-rusher.

The front seven and defense as a whole has a chance to be very much improved in San Diego this year. Not only did the Chargers add Bosa, who eventually could be the catalyst for the entire defense, but they added a proven run stuffer in Brandon Mebane, two very different types of second level players in Jatavis Brown and Bosa’s Ohio State roommate, Joshua Perry. The Chargers are now rich with young inside linebacker talent. San Diego also made one of the best, yet under-the-radar, offseason signings by inking Casey Hayward, who fits this secondary and cover scheme perfectly. It also should be noted San Diego’s defensive coordinator, John Pagano, is one of the NFL's more underrated defensive minds and does a great job of staying unpredictable, especially with disguising coverages.

The Chargers add much needed defensive reinforcements, so it's safe to expect a major step forward from several young members of the unit. The obvious choices for that uptick are Attaochu, Kyle Emanuel, and especially Denzel Perryman. Perryman is the perfect young physical player to quarterback and lead this defense for the foreseeable future with his high intensity style of play.

All of this sounds rosy, and there should be optimism with the Chargers defense. But it's still very much a unit that has a lot of work to do. Any way you slice it, though, Bosa will be the group’s most important player.