The 7th round of the NFL draft is the flier round. It is where teams take calculated risks on players they like for one reason or another. Maybe that one has developmental upside. Maybe another has special teams value. GM Ryan Poles surprised Chicago Bears fans when he took Travis Bell in the 7th round this year. It was a surprise for two reasons. One was that Bell became the third defensive tackle the team had drafted that weekend, joining Gervon Dexter (2nd round) and Zacch Pickens (3rd round). The other is that Bell came from Kennesaw State.
Until a decade ago, that college didn’t even have a football program. It had been known for success in baseball, basketball, and softball. Then, in 2013, they finally joined the gridiron ranks. As expected, it took time for the program to establish credibility. By 2017, they were winning more games. There was one problem. Players weren’t getting drafted. Kennesaw State had no national profile. Bell became the first player to finally break through. Poles admitted the defensive tackle was one of his favorite people in the entire class.
It was a fun story.
That was all most people thought it was. A nice little underdog story. When it comes to actually making an impact on the team? Unlikely. Or so people thought. Based on what’s happening in training camp, according to Adam Jahns of The Athletic, Bell’s chances of cracking the roster are real.
But if you listen closely to Travis Smith, Bell is certainly in a mix for a spot on the first 53-man roster. Similar to Pickens, Bell has played with Dexter as the defense’s one-technique tackle. It doesn’t matter that Bell is undersized at 6-foot.
“When you watch him in there, even watching the end of the (preseason) game when (the Colts) were in four-minute mode, he’s not getting knocked back,” Smith said. “He’s playing with good pad level. He’s got quick feet right there.
“I was taught when I was growing up as an assistant, never put a ceiling on a man, and that’s the same thing for him. He might be 6-foot, but you’re playing like Calais Campbell in there if you have the right heart and you can play with the disposition in there with great pad level and make sure they don’t move you, you move them.”
The Chicago Bears clearly don’t fear inexperience.
Head coach Matt Eberflus has said from the beginning that his staff keep open minds. Forget draft status, experience level, or how much a guy gets paid. Focus on what’s happening on the field. The players that look the best should be the ones getting the roster spots. Bell isn’t bowing to the competition. He has a sack and four run stops through 55 snaps of preseason action. It is evident he plays with effort, intensity, and quickness. If he can finish strong against Buffalo on Saturday, he might be the fifth defensive tackle on the main roster.
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Poles would deserve a nod of approval for such an accomplishment. Adding three defensive tackles in the same draft and seeing all three play well enough to earn a roster spot is impressive. Don’t forget the team also added veteran Andrew Billings in free agency. They carried four defensive tackles on the roster last season. So it would purely be on the efforts of Bell if they made room for a fifth.
