When thinking about the entire COVID pandemic, NFL fans can only cringe. They see a virus that robbed them of a whole year of attending football games and sabotaged the salary cap. This forced their favorite teams to unload players they otherwise might’ve been able to keep. There was nothing fun about it. However, there might’ve been a silver lining. Matt Eberflus explained during his appearance on the Cris Collinsworth podcast.
One of the byproducts of the pandemic was several players at the college level missed out on the 2020 season either due to cancellation or opting out. That means many of them weren’t as far along in their development as they’d normally be. This has created an unusual situation in the 2022 draft where it appears deeper in terms of overall talent than normal. That is a huge benefit for a team like the Chicago Bears with no 1st round pick.
It is an interesting point.
Players that might normally sneak into the 1st round may have to settle for the 2nd this year because of that unusual byproduct. With two 2nd round picks at #39 and #48, the Bears are well-positioned to land two really good talents. For example, The Draft Network gave seven offensive linemen 1st round grades. That offers favorable odds at least one of them falls to the Bears. Five wide receivers and four cornerbacks have similar grades.
Eberflus knows the team should be able to fill two of their biggest needs if they choose to stay put at those picks. Yet from what he said, it can also be hinted the Bears may try to take further advantage of the depth by trading down with one of them. With only six picks at present, GM Ryan Poles might be keen on getting more. It isn’t ideal, but it’s far from unmanageable.
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Matt Eberflus’ teaching ability will be tested early.
Even if the Bears do trade down for more picks, they’re going to be leaning heavily on late round selections and undrafted free agents this year. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Teams can find quality talent in those areas all the time. It often comes down to whether they have a coaching staff capable of developing them. That requires high teaching capacity, which the previous staff under Matt Nagy lacked.
Matt Eberflus has lauded the teaching prowess of his new one several times already. It was a vital trait he sought in all of his assistants. Being an athlete is one thing. It doesn’t matter much if you can’t learn the game of football. That is what separates guys who thrive in the NFL vs. those who exit after 3-4 years. Many of them couldn’t grasp the game at its most intricate levels.
This Bears regime hopes to change that.
All fans can do is wait to see what happens. The first draft of a new GM is often telling. Phil Emery had 2012 headlined by Shea McClellin. Ryan Pace had 2015 headlined by Kevin White. Poles is in a trickier spot with no 1st round pick. That bodes well for the future if he can somehow still pull off a credible draft.
