NEWSLETTER
The NFL Draft begins TOMORROW.
Time to cram …
• Arif Hassan (The Athletic) and Matt Miller (Bleacher Report) released updated final big boards. Nothing says “the draft is coming!” like a final big board reveal.
• Here’s an idea: Let’s check out which prospects are ranked where the Bears are slated to pick based on Hassan’s big board: Utah CB Jaylon Johnson (43), Southern Illinois S Jeremy Chinn (50), Cincinnati TE Josiah Deguara (163), Vanderbilt WR Kalija Lipscomb (196), Michigan S Khaleke Hudson (200), Iowa QB Nate Stanley (226), Mississippi State S Brian Cole II (233)
• If that’s what the Bears come away with in the draft, at least it would address a bunch of needs. Heck, there’s even a late-round quarterback dart throw with the addition of Nate Stanley. It isn’t my ideal draft, but it’s one that I would probably find sensible at face value.
• As for Miller, his big board only goes 50 deep. At No. 43, Miller has Ohio State running back J.K. Dobbins. Meanwhile, TCU receiver Jalen Reagor checks in as Miller’s No. 50 prospect. Reagor would be a dynamic prospect for the Bears to snag in Round 2. A deep-threat pass-catcher with speed to burn and the ability to contribute on special teams as a return specialist is something I’d always be looking to add.
• Check out some Reagor highlights:
• Where do I sign up to draft that guy?
• As for Dobbins, that might be a tougher sell to Bears fans, especially if you consider the needs at other positions. But if Chicago is hell bent on fixing its offense, adding one of the best backs in the class and telling Matt Nagy to run the stinking ball more often would be one way to go about fixing something that was broken last year.
• FiveThirtyEight has a model that projects where prospects are going. You can check it out here. Using this model as our guide, the Bears are going to be in a position to land LSU CB Kristian Fulton (43rd), TCU WR Jalen Reagor (50th), St. John’s (Minnesota) OL Ben Bartch (163rd), Michigan LB/S Khaleke Hudson (196th), South Carolina State OL Alex Taylor (200th), Ohio State S Jordan Fuller (226th), and Tennessee WR Jauan Jennings (233rd).
• Two mock drafts to browse through over at the Chicago Audible. Nicholas Moreano’s third mock has the Bears trading down in Round 2, addressing needs at receiver (K.J. Hamler), quarterback (Jake Fromm), offensive line (Damien Lewis), tight end (Brycen Hopkins), safety (Julian Blackmon), cornerback (Madre Harper), edge rusher (Trevon Hill), and running back (Patrick Taylor). I appreciate that Harper is starting to get some of the spotlight that his former teammate at SIU Jeremy Chinn was getting. The Salukis had a great secondary and a team good enough to make the playoffs. Let’s just say the selection committee isn’t getting any holiday cards from me any time soon.
• Stephen Letizia’s third mock also has the Bears trading down. Hopefully, conventional wisdom prevails and that’s what the team ends up doing. As for the guys who come off the board, Letizia sends the Bears Arizona State WR Brandon Aiyuk, Ohio State CB Damon Arnette, Louisiana-Lafayette G Robert Hunt, Clemson DB K’Von Wallace, Cincinnati TE Josiah Deguara, Michigan OL Jon Runyan, and Oregon State QB Jake Luton. Frankly, I’m impressed with the sheer volume of picks. Throw enough darts at the board, hope you hit a bullseye. That’s the mindset the Bears need to be taking entering draft weekend. Quantity and quality.
• Adam Hoge (NBC Sports Chicago) has a third mock of his own to share. The picks are intriguing, to be sure. Hoge selects Ohio State CB Damon Arnette, Notre Dame WR Chase Claypool, Utah safety Julian Blackmon, Miami running back DeeJay Dallas, Florida International quarterback James Morgan, West Virginia offensive lineman Colton McKivitz, and Northwestern defensive lineman Joe Gaziano. Hoge doesn’t mock any trades, but does a good job of sizing up the Bears needs and addressing them in ways you would expect the team would if they stand pat with all their picks.
• Here is a mock from Hoge’s NBC Sports Chicago teammate JJ Stankevitz:
Did one of those mocks on @TheDraftNetwork. Thoughts? pic.twitter.com/WOXouYm3bQ
— JJ Stankevitz (@JJStankevitz) April 22, 2020
• Oh, sure … *NOW* the Bears draft Lamar Jackson!
• I’m digging the picks JJ sent to the Bears here. Although, I’m not a Steven Montez fan. Maybe there’s something that can change my mind out there. Or maybe I need to not listen to my friends who saw him play at Colorado? But the same guys who raved about Phillip Lindsay and Laviska Shenault Jr. didn’t have too many kind words for Mr. Montez. But hey, maybe something clicks at the pro level. I’m open to ideas.
• Here’s a tweet that gives me some hope:
Gotta love every letter of this tweet if you're a Bears fan https://t.co/XCFMaPBPal
— BradOTC (@BradOTC) April 21, 2020
• In a year when the Bears don’t have a first-round pick, I absolutely love reading about the depth in this class. It truly warms my heart at night. Here’s hoping GM Ryan Pace is in a place to take advantage of it this weekend.
• Houston tackle Josh Jones falling into the Bears laps would make things quite interesting on draft day.
• The Cole Kmet love fest is ON:
ND TE Cole Kmet grew up a Bears fan. Says going to the Bears would be a “Really cool experience.” @LaurenceWHolmes @670TheScore
— Mark Grote (@markgrotesports) April 21, 2020
https://twitter.com/TheAthleticCHI/status/1252940599612919810?s=20
• Here’s the catch: Kmet might not even make it to Round 2. NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero hears that Kmet could be one of five players who are surprise first-round picks tomorrow night. One AFC coach told Pelissero: “If you want him, you’re going to have to take him late first or early, early second. … He’s probably one of the top inline Ys in the last couple of years.” Kmet certainly has admirable qualities, and that the AFC coach also described him as “super smart” and “high character in every way” essentially checks Bears GM Ryan Pace’s “football intelligence” box.
• Part of me wonders if we have been spent enough time talking about the *OTHER* playmaking pass-catcher who played ball at Notre Dame, Chase Claypool.
https://twitter.com/PFF_College/status/1252677986421059584?s=20
• It probably wouldn’t take much for me to get behind a draft in which the Bears pick a pair of LSU defensive backs. Both Kristian Fulton (cornerback) and Grant Delpit (safety) could be second-round options when the Bears are on the clock:
Some notes I got from sources:
– Albert Okwuegbunam is TE wildcard. A few teams have him as TE1, others have him in RD4-5
– Better chance Kristian Fulton lands in Round 2 than Round 1
– Logan Wilson’s will go higher than we think
– Could see early RD2 slip for Delpit/Baun
— Chris Trapasso (@ChrisTrapasso) April 22, 2020
• Here’s a plan that’s crazy enough to work: Draft all of the LSU Tigers.
• OK, perhaps I am being a bit facetious here. But what if I’m not? LSU has long been a pipeline pushing through NFL talent on an annual basis. And that looks like it will be the case again in 2020. In addition to Fulton and Delpit, interior offensive linemen Lloyd Cushenberry III and Damien Lewis, and offensive tackle Saahdiq Charles have been mocked to go in the middle and later rounds. Contrary to popular belief, Joe Burrow wasn’t a one-man team. That Tigers squad was loaded. So much so, the draft-eligible players are worth a deeper look.
• A late add to the meetings list:
Adding to this, Reggie Robinson II recently held pre-draft meetings over FaceTime with the #Bears & #Saints. https://t.co/m0F3pCE3yl
— Justin M (@JustinM_NFL) April 22, 2020
• Seriously, man … no vacuums allowed:
Bears GM Ryan Pace said today he will draft in his dining room. Has 7 monitors and a cord running from his router down the stairs to his setup to make sure internet is running smoothly. Noted a hiccup the other day when his wife vacuumed and accidentally unplugged his monitors.
— Colleen Kane (@ChiTribKane) April 21, 2020
