GM Ryan Pace entered draft weekend under immense pressure. His offseason up to that point could best be called uninspiring. He’d signed Andy Dalton as the new starting quarterback and successfully managed to secure key in-house free agents like Allen Robinson and Cairo Santos. At the same time, he was also forced to cut Kyle Fuller due to salary cap problems. Nothing about the moves said the Chicago Bears were pointed in the right direction.
That meant Pace needed to have a productive draft. Something that could get fans believing in this organization again. He needed a splash. So he decided to make one. In a bold move he’s become known for, the Bears GM executed a trade up from #20 overall to #11, grabbing Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields. It was a moment that Bears fans were united in celebrating. This wasn’t the Mitch Trubisky move of four years ago. Chicago just got themselves a legitimate QB with proven experience at a major program.
Excitement was palpable.
Yet the work wasn’t over yet. They still had six rounds to go and other needs to address. Over the next two days, Pace continued to maneuver up and down the board. So much that the Bears didn’t use a single one of their original seven picks. All had been traded. This didn’t seem to bother those who watched it unfold. In fact, it seems to have only worked in the Bears’ favor. According to NFL.com, Chicago came away with the best overall class in the league for 2021.
“Heading into the draft, there was a dark energy around this team, an ominous feeling that the current regime would spend 2021 playing out the string before hitting the unemployment line. But then something magical happened: Justin Fields began to slide. And when the Ohio State quarterback surprisingly remained on the board through Carolina and Denver’s picks, the Bears pounced, jumping up from No. 20 to 11 to secure the dynamic dual-threat’s services.
The vibe in Chicago instantly flipped: Hope sprung! Feeling his trade-up oats, Pace moved up again on Day 2 to grab Jenkins, a violent tackle who was routinely projected as a first-rounder in Mock SZN. Suddenly, the arrow’s pointing up for the Bears — and for the continued employment of Nagy and Pace.”
Most of the praise clearly centers on the Bears’ first two picks. Landing Fields at #11 was great by itself. Yet being able to grab offensive tackle Teven Jenkins at #39 in the 2nd round was a massive coup as well. Many evaluators had Jenkins as a 1st round prospect. A massive, powerful blocker who dominated in the run game and was much better as a pass protector than he got credit for. The rest of the class after that was merely frosting on the cake.
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Chicago Bears believe they accomplished several goals
The most important was upgrading the offense. Five of the seven picks they used were on that side of the football. Hardly a surprise when the unit ranked 29th and 26th each of the past two seasons. They have to start scoring more points if they’re going to win football games consistently. Fields and Jenkins were obvious steps in the right direction. They weren’t the only ones though.
Larry Borom arrived via the 5th round. While not the athlete Jenkins is, he produced plenty of strong tape at Missouri and appears to be another powerful offensive tackle to work with. In the 6th round? The Chicago Bears struck twice, first grabbing underrated Virginia Tech running back Khalil Herbert followed by North Carolina receiver Dazz Newsome. Herbert only had one standout year of production but that wasn’t entirely his fault. Newsome was consistently good for the Tarheels but often overshadowed by teammate Dyami Brown.
Even the defense got some help.
Oregon cornerback Thomas Graham Jr. capped their 6th round work. A player several experts felt was good enough to go much earlier. Last but not least was big BYU nose tackle Khyiris Tonga in the 7th round. Some much-needed depth behind Eddie Goldman. So yeah. A well-balanced class with what appears to be lots of value at almost every pick. All of it capped by a promising, young quarterback.
Well-played, Mr. Pace.