Ryan Pace gets plenty of criticism for his work with the Chicago Bears. Yet one thing cannot be argued at this point. He is probably the best GM they’ve had in over three decades at finding quality talent in undrafted free agency. The list to this point is pretty impressive. Bryce Callahan, Cameron Meredith, and Roy Robertson-Harris all became standout contributors. Now Sam Mustipher and Alex Bars join that list after a strong 2020 showing.
Mining good offensive linemen from unexpected places is difficult for any team. Yet the Bears showed they know how to do it with those two. Now it looks like they might have designs on finding that next hidden gem. According to Justin Melo of The Draft Network, Chicago met recently with Tennessee center Brandon Kennedy. One of the more unknown names in this year’s draft cycle.
https://twitter.com/JustinM_NFL/status/1377382079910932481
Kennedy is an interesting story.
He started out at Alabama but after two seasons and limited playing time, he decided to transfer to Tennessee. Then before he could even get settled in, he tore his ACL. Rather than get discouraged, he got himself ready for 2019 and ended up starting the next 21 straight games. A surefire sign of resilience and work ethic from the young blocker.
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The two traits that keep coming up the most about him are leadership and intelligence. Kennedy was in full control of the line during the past two seasons. He’s been highly decorated for his academic success as well. He made the SEC Honor Roll three times, won the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Award, and was also a finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy which is given to players with the best academic, community service, and on-field performance.
Here’s Brandon Kennedy and Trey Smith opening up the hole for Jabari Small, leading to this nice run & truck pic.twitter.com/MtSLjZi0Tj
— Trey Wallace (@TreyWallace_) October 5, 2020
Love turning on a player's film and seeing a big play right off the bat. Tennessee OC Brandon Kennedy has my attention pic.twitter.com/sZhlKPqHim
— Zach Hicks (@ZachHicks2) February 11, 2021
More steam. Tennessee OL with a little nasty here.
Vols having some success running behind Trey Smith and BK, with some 'move the pile' assists from Carvin, Darnell Wright, and Smith again.
This is the 'finish' Jeremy Pruitt is looking for. pic.twitter.com/DDBZmPU2l5
— Jesse Simonton (@JesseReSimonton) October 20, 2019
Chicago Bears have good reasons to like him
The initial knock on Kennedy is obvious. He reportedly comes in at 6’2 and 286 lbs. That is fairly small by NFL standards for an interior blocker. It’ll be a concern when he has to go up against bigger nose tackles in the NFL. Guys who routinely weigh 330 lbs or more. Not that this bothers Kennedy himself. He faced bigger defensive linemen for years in the SEC and didn’t seem to have problems handling them.
When it comes to his positives? Two things stand out. His agility and his physicality. Kennedy moves really well for a center. He’s routinely able to get out in space and pick off linebackers or defensive backs at the second and third levels. His strength is better than people think and he flashes violence and nastiness in the run game. The style of play he exhibits is perfect for a zone-blocking system. The exact sort the Chicago Bears run.
So it’s easy to see the attraction.
Kennedy feels like a prospect that could get drafted late this month. Perhaps the 6th or 7th round. However, it’s more likely he ends up an undrafted free agent. His profile is almost exactly like Mustipher was from two years ago. Wicked smart and athletic but undersized and lacking overall strength. Given how well Mustipher has played for them, it isn’t a surprise they’d be interested in somebody similar.