The Chicago Bears scouts are busy 24/7/365. While the team may be focused on the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, they’re busy traveling the college football landscape hoping to find their next batch of young athletes. It would appear that one or two of their number were discovered by Tyler James of the South Bend Tribune attending Notre Dame’s matchup against the Virginia Cavaliers. One that saw the Irish deliver a 35-20 victory.
While most eyes were likely on Notre Dame given their long history as an NFL pipeline, there were a number of intriguing talents on the Virginia side as well. One in particular probably had the attention of the Bears. His name is Charles Snowden. This kid isn’t a top name among draftniks at the moment, but it’s not hard to see why the Bears are interested. They almost certainly see visions of Leonard Floyd in the young Cavaliers linebacker.
Snowden has moved around in their defense from outside linebacker to inside linebacker. He’s 6’7 and 225 lbs with outstanding athleticism. This was evident last year when he had 2.5 sacks, two interceptions, and eight (!) pass deflections. It was apparent that if he could continue to hone his craft, he has a bright future in the NFL. Fast forward to today and he has three sacks already through the first four games of the season.
No doubt the Bears wanted to see how he looked against big Irish tackle Liam Eichenberg, one of the top prospects at his position expected for 2020.
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Chicago Bears scouts know Floyd’s future is in question
It shouldn’t be a surprise the Bears are looking at someone like Snowden. For starters, Aaron Lynch and Isaiah Irving will both be free agents next year. As for Floyd, his future is in doubt as well. Not because he’s been bad. It’s more that the team may not be able to offer him the money he could possibly demand. Next year will be the last of his rookie contract, the Bears having picked up the 5th-year option. So they’ll have a decision to make. Do they extend him, trade him, or let him play out the deal?
Either way, it would be wise for the Bears to start stockpiling young talent at that position. Khalil Mack is a monster, but he’s also getting closer to 30-years old. There is no telling when a player will lose steam once they reach that barrier. Some go on for years, others vanish. Snowden is the sort of long-term project with an immense upside that outside linebackers coach Ted Monachino could work serious magic with. Like Floyd, he’d need to bulk up and refine his fundamentals, but the building blocks are there.
