NFL Draft 2017: Notre Dame DE Isaac Rochell Is Seventh Round Pick of Los Angeles Chargers

Isaac Rochell has become the second Notre Dame Fighting Irish player to be selected in the 2017 NFL Draft.

The Los Angeles Chargers picked the 6-foot-4, 280 pound defensive end with their final pick in the draft - No. 235 overall (seventh round, seventh pick).

Rochell, of McDonough, Ga., was a team captain and a solid contributor to the Irish defense for three years. He was on the field for 83 percent of the team’s snaps over that period.

NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein described Rochell this way:

Lunch-pail player from a blue-collar background whose effort and motor will make him a favorite of coaches he plays for. What Rochell offers in effort, he lacks as a skilled pass rusher, and his inability to get after the quarterback will create a difficult challenge for him. While his best fit might be a 3-4 defensive end, he could be viewed as rotational defensive lineman with little to no third-down value. Rochell has third-day draft value with eventual starter potential if he can sharpen his pass-rush tools.

Mike Mayock liked what he saw from Rochell.

“Coaches and scouts like him because he works,” the NFL Network analyst said following Notre Dame’s Pro Day. “He’s got a long body. He can play defensive end in your base package. Some teams may even kick him in on sub packages. But he’s a worker bee. He’s a long body, good size, worker and those guys typically play in the league for a while. So I’m rooting for Isaac Rochell.”

The Los Angeles Chargers currently don’t have anyone from Notre Dame on their roster, although they employed now-Notre Dame quarterbacks coach Tommy Rees, linebacker Manti Te’o and guard Chris Watt last year.

CBS Sports’ Spencer Hall gave the Chargers an A+ grade for selecting Rochell. “A very athletic DL with high character and a motor that always runs hot. Very good value in round 7,” wrote Hall.

Read more about the Rochell pick from SB Nation’s Chargers site, Bolts from the Blue.

Quarterback DeShone Kizer was the first former Irish picked. He was selected in the second round by the Cleveland Browns.