17. LOS ANGELES CHARGERS (9-7)

LAST SEASON: Bolts went winless in first four games of relocation season Joel Iyiegbuniwe Color Rush Jersey , but rest of coach Anthony Lynn's first year in charge was very encouraging. Los Angeles won nine of final 12 games with vicious offense led by stalwart quarterback Philip Rivers and receiver Keenan Allen, who lived up to potential to become one of NFL's best playmakers. Los Angeles occasionally struggled to run ball, but passing game made it mostly irrelevant. Defense struggled against run at times, but still forced turnovers and did more than enough to secure victories. Chargers won final five home games at cozy StubHub Center, even establishing home-field advantage late in year. They missed playoffs on tiebreaker on final day of season, but few teams head into 2018 with more momentum.

THEY NEED: LB, DL, OL, RB.

THEY DON'T NEED: WR, TE Youth Jerome Baker Jersey , CB.

POSSIBLE FIRST PICK: LB Rashaan Evans, Alabama; T Mike McGlinchey, Notre Dame; DT Da'Ron Payne, Alabama; DE Marcus Davenport, UTSA; LB-DE Harold Landry, Boston College; LB Leighton Vander Esch, Boise State.

OUTLOOK: Bolstering run defense is logical step, and several athletic linebackers could supplement depth at position, which is thin behind Denzel Perryman. Another defensive lineman would be welcome, as would elite offensive lineman capable of taking over at right tackle or filling in if Chargers are hit with another round of injuries. Bolts mostly played it cool during free agency http://www.giantsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-cody-latimer-jersey , and they're in position to take best available player throughout draft while being fairly confident they've got solid talent base. If right opportunity arises, they even might decide it's finally time to draft successor to Rivers, who says he plans to play for "a handful more years," but will turn 37 during season. Rivers hasn't missed game since 2006, but even he knows Bolts will have to get somebody new at some point.
The man convicted of manslaughter in the 2016 road rage shooting death of former NFL running back Joe McKnight was sentenced to 30 years in prison Thursday.

Ronald Gasser, 56, had faced up to 40 years in prison. Defense lawyers argued that Gasser fired in self-defense when McKnight walked up to his car following a 5-mile confrontation that began on a bridge spanning the Mississippi River in New Orleans and ended with gunfire in neighboring Jefferson Parish.

"Let this be a cautionary tale," Judge Ellen Kovach said. McKnight's death could have been avoided "if either of the men had had the good sense, the courage and the wisdom to simply disengage."

Sentencing followed emotional testimony from McKnight's loved ones.

"That day, you didn't have to do that Ravens Authentic Jerseys ," McKnight's mother, Jennifer McKnight, said while looking down at Gasser, who sat a few feet away at the defense table. She cried throughout her testimony and was escorted from the courtroom sobbing.

Witnesses at the trial said McKnight had been weaving in and out of traffic at high speed before the shooting. Prosecutors acknowledged to the jury that he was, in the words of Assistant District Attorney Seth Shute, "driving like a jerk." But they argued that Gasser escalated the conflict, following him down an exit that he would not ordinarily have taken moments before the shooting.

Shute acknowledged that McKnight had a hand on the open, passenger side window of Gasser's car before he was shot. But he said physical evidence proved Gasser lied during extensive police questioning when he claimed McKnight lunged at him.

Michelle Quick, the mother of McKnight's now 9-year-old son, described struggling to tell the child what had happened Authentic Jason Pominville Jersey , and trying to protect him from seeing internet video of McKnight on the ground at the shooting scene as people worked to save him.

Defense attorney Matthew Goetz, who is appealing the verdict, had argued for a lenient sentence, noting Gasser's lack of a criminal record. A prosecutor argued that Gasser has shown no remorse.

McKnight had been a high school football hero at Louisiana's John Curtis Christian School. He signed with the University of Southern California in 2006. In the NFL, he played three seasons for the New York Jets and one with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Gasser was indicted on a second-degree murder charge. The jury voted 10-2 in January for the lesser verdict of manslaughter.

Gasser did not leave the scene of the shooting and he was released for a time after being questioned. He is white and his release after the shooting of the black athlete sparked protests from some who said race was a factor.

Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand, who has since retired, denied that race played any role and noted that a thorough investigation led to Gasser's arrest and indictment. Prosecutors later recounted a painstaking investigation, including an extensive search for witnesses and physical evidence that eventually led to Gasser being charged.

The case in some ways echoed another New Orleans-area road rage shooting from 2016. Former New Orleans Saints star Will Smith was gunned down in that April incident. The shooter was later convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 25 years.

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