The Chicago Bears won’t be the belle of the ball this year in the upcoming NFL draft. They now sit in the boring territory of other playoff teams, picking the mid-20s. While that is good news for their present, it makes improving their future more difficult. Teams that aren’t able to find good players in this area of the 1st round don’t usually stay in the win column for very long. That is why GM Ryan Poles can’t afford to get this upcoming 25th overall pick wrong. So how might he go about it? Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network revealed what he thinks will happen.
The draft insider unveiled his first mock draft of the offseason. It unfolds as they usually do. There is an early run on offensive tackles, cornerbacks, and pass rushers. However, when the time came for the Bears to pick, Jeremiah produced a shocker.
Pick 25 – Chicago Bears – Dillon Thieneman, Oregon · S · Junior
The Bears figure to be in the safety market with the contracts expiring for Kevin Byard, Jaquan Brisker and C.J. Gardner-Johnson. Thieneman can play both safety spots and could cover in the slot if needed.
Now, picking a safety by itself would be a surprise. The Bears haven’t selected one in the 1st round since Mark Carrier way back in 1990. Yet there is another layer to this. Jeremiah has them passing on Peter Woods, who many believe is the best defensive tackle in this draft. His reasoning?
Folks around the league are split on Woods’ evaluation. Some don’t view him as a first-round pick, but he has the quickness to add to the league’s best pass-rush group as an inside rusher.
It’s hard to imagine the Chicago Bears not taking the chance on Woods.
When a guy is compared to Jeffery Simmons as a talent, you almost have to take the gamble. Woods never had what you would call a breakout season at Clemson. His production was steady, but many feel he is still unpolished and needs to shed some weight. Yet the flashes he has are dominant. He has the quickness and burst to blow into the backfield at will while also having the power to hold his ground against the run. Given how underwhelming the Bears are in the middle, this feels like a worthwhile gamble.
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That said, if Thieneman is the pick, the Chicago Bears would still be in a good spot. He is a versatile, rangy safety who gets his hands on the ball a lot and isn’t afraid to stick his nose into the scrum to make tackles. He’s earned comparisons to Jevon Holland. There is no question Dennis Allen would make great use of him. Still, taking a safety that early feels unnecessary since Poles has already demonstrated he can find good ones outside the 1st round.
