Tatoo on bears hand1/29/2024 Chicago turned around on day two and addressed the defensive line, taking a pair of two-gapping block-eaters in Gervon Dexter Sr. Chicago grabbed a mauling offensive tackle in Tennessee’s Darnell Wright in the first round, giving quarterback Justin Fields a talented pass protector who can also help open up holes in the run game. The Bears added a massive amount of sheer size to both sides of the trenches. The Ringer’s Danny Kelly praised Poles for his haul this draft, including bolstering the trenches, adding more weapons around Fields and shoring up the cornerback group. A great haul for a team under construction. This is a great combination of guys who are ready to contribute, and guys who need a bit of work, but were drafted about where they should have been. Roschon Johnson probably would have been a second-day guy were he not backing up Bijan Robinson, Tyler Scott is one of the more underrated receivers in this class, Noah Sewell is a fine two-down linebacker who can thump, and Terell Smith is a big cornerback who locked his opponents down in 2022 to the tune of an opponent passer rating of 68.2. Tyrique Stevenson is a nice developmental cornerback, but it’s the third day where the Bears’ draft REALLY gets interesting. General manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus clearly have a type here. On the other side of the line, Dexter is a formidable athletic prospect with some technique work to do, and Zacch Pickens is another guy with hybrid size who can get things done on the move. Wright is coming off a season in which he erased Will Anderson Jr., BJ Ojulari, and Bryan Bresee, so he projects pretty well to the NFL. The Bears had all kinds of needs along their offensive line, and they started this start by trading down with the Eagles and still getting Wright, the best offensive tackle in this class. Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar loved the work Poles did in the trenches, as well as some potential late-round steals on Day 3. He did drop 11.3% of the passes thrown his way, but the big-play ability he offers makes sense here. ![]() Still, he can fly, and he averaged 16.4 yards per catch with Cincinnati in 2022. He’s not the biggest player, and as a converted running back, he’s still learning the position. This is great value for a player like Scott. Johnson earned 80.0-plus PFF rushing grades in four consecutive seasons with the Longhorns. He offered very little as a pass-rusher in 2022 with just a 55.2 grade, but his explosiveness is evident.ĭay 3: Johnson was overshadowed by Bijan Robinson in the Texas backfield but brings plenty to the table for a team that should run more than just about any team in the NFL next season. ![]() Dexter is young at just over 21 years of age. He allowed just eight total pressures in 2022.ĭay 2: Dexter’s 4.88-second 40-yard dash at 6-foot-6 and 318 pounds ranked in the 83rd percentile among interior defenders in PFF’s database, but he needs to turn that athleticism into more production at the next level. He produced a PFF grade of just 71.4 in 2022 but has some really good reps on tape where he just overpowers people. Pro Football Focus appreciated the value that Chicago got on Day 3 of the draft.ĭay 1: Wright fills a need for the Bears, but he is just the 22nd-ranked player on the PFF draft board. Linebacker Noah Sewell (148) was a tackling force in college, and now he’ll get to try to blitz past his brother, Penei, in the NFC North. Terell Smith (165) is my 14th-ranked cornerback, and the Bears got him a round later than I had him going. He is powerful between the tackles. Tyler Scott (133) is a slot wideout who runs after the catch like a tailback. Running back Roschon Johnson (115) played behind Bijan Robinson at Texas, but Johnson probably would have started at most other FBS schools. ![]() Some of this had to do with getting ahead on the DTs early in a thinner-than-normal class, but I’m grading each class on value, and so the Bears have to get dinged.Īs for the rest of this class? I’m a fan. It’s just that both Gervon Dexter (53) and Zacch Pickens (64) were a round early based on my rankings. I was more down on two of its Day 2 picks, as I mentioned Friday, but I get building through the trenches. Wright is the best right tackle in this class, a 333-pound lineman who started 42 games in college. ESPN’s Mel Kiper praised Poles for building in the trenches, where the Bears’ biggest needs were.Ĭhicago had been connected with Darnell Wright (9) for months - I matched this one in my two-round mock draft - mostly because of its gaping void at right tackle.
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