One thing that GM Ryan Poles has remained consistent about is investing at premium positions. To him, those include the offensive line, pass rushers, and cornerbacks. If people thought he was exaggerating when he first took over the Chicago Bears in 2022, they better take him seriously now. Over his first two drafts, Poles has selected three cornerbacks. Two of them, Kyler Gordon and Tyrique Stevenson, were 2nd round picks. This Bears regime seems to think there is no such thing as too many talented corners.
Even as they focus on key needs like tackle, pass rusher and wide receiver, they’ve quietly been meeting with some of the higher-ranked corners in this draft class. Another got added to that list according to Justin Melo of The Draft Network. Chicago is showing interest in Notre Dame standout Cam Hart. While not always consistent for much of his college career, he took big strides in 2023, matching up well against some of the best receivers in the country. It isn’t hard to see the appeal. There aren’t many 6’3 corners with 33-inch arms and 4.5 speed in the NFL.
Ryan Poles knows who he’d be handing Hart over to.
We’ve already seen how good head coach Matt Eberflus and his staff are at developing young cornerbacks. Gordon and Stevenson have both excelled early in their careers. Even rookie Terell Smith had some promising performances. There is no doubt Eberflus and secondary coach Jon Hoke would love to get their hands on a gifted project like Hart. He has the athleticism, physicality, and swagger for the position. The primary issues are his inconsistent ball production and lack of discipline in coverage.
Such things can be coached. Hart earned comparisons to Washington starter Benjamin St. Juste. He was a 3rd round pick for them in 2021. After two inconsistent years, he blossomed last season with an interception and 17 passes defended. Not to mention a sack and a career-high 67 tackles. This means Ryan Poles may feel Hart will be an option in the 3rd round, which is when the Bears next pick after #9 overall. It would mark the third straight draft where they took a cornerback in the top three rounds, the first time any GM has ever done that in franchise history.
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@Dr Melhus This year, if Poles drafts in the lower rounds, I’d rather he draft offensive players and see what his offensive position coaches can do. The lower round draftees all need development and coaching and right now, the Bears need to see how their receivers coach, and defensive line coach does. Hoke may have brought along Stevenson, but Smith still needs work, and unless they cut Velus Jones or Tyler Scott, the receivers coach did absolutely nothing last year, and they have to make up ground. DJ Moore and Keenan Allen may be starters, but the Bears have very… Read more »
I like the homework being done here. Poles won’t know until the draft hits picks 7 or 8 if he’s going to get his wish. If not I do see a trade down, with more than 1 team wanting #9. Someone might surrender 3 picks, including a 5th or 6th where a player like this might be available. Looking at his build I envision a future safety down the road
DBs are the highest percentage choices of all positions in the 6th round of the draft on down. If Poles really wants to add more young DBs to this team -remember, we have a couple on the PS, one was a draft pick last year – then make some sort of trade to get some late round picks and let Jon Hoke and Eberflus develop them. They are very good at teaching DBs, so use their talents to free up higher draft picks for other positions, until we have our holes filled. Right now we still need a 3Tech, Center,… Read more »
1.1 QB; 1.9 WR or OT; 3.75 C or DE; 4.122 OG or DT
If Poles thinks CB is a bigger need than whatever other positions are on the board at the time, sure, I suppose. While the Bears have two top 10 picks (before possibly trading out), 3rd rounders aren’t throw-away picks. Here’s some of the better players drafted in the third round: Chris Jones, Terrell Owens, Kirk Cousins, Justin Houston, Alvin Kamara, Frank Gore, Jamaal Charles, Marshall Yanda, Jason Witten, Russell Wilson, Steve Smith. There is almost always a player who most analysts have a second round grade on that falls to the third round. (There’s usually a second round grade that… Read more »