One thing we’ve learned about GM Ryan Poles since taking over the Chicago Bears is he’s always on the lookout for talented offensive linemen and isn’t afraid to dabble in smaller schools. Braxton Jones is a shining example of this. Chicago plucked the talented left tackle out of Southern Utah in 2022, and he immediately became their starter. So nobody should be surprised that Poles might think about trying this again. It appears he already has somebody in mind.
The 2024 offensive tackle class is widely considered a strong one in this draft. If there is one name generating tons of buzz in scouting circles, it’s Kiran Amegadjie of Yale. His profile really started taking off last season as he showcased his unique blend of incredible size (6’5, 326 lbs), length (36-inch arms), and mobility. He has the quick feet necessary to handle NFL pass rushers and stands out most in the run game, where he is aggressive and mean. It is little wonder Poles and the Bears scheduled him for a private visit according to Justin Melo of The Draft Network.
It also doesn’t hurt that Amegadjie was born in Hinsdale, Illinois. He’s a local kid.
Ryan Poles has preferences, and Amegadjie fits them.
The Bears GM loves big athletes with length. That is showing on both sides of the ball with guys like Jones, Darnell Wright, Gervon Dexter, Montez Sweat, and Zacch Pickens. He also loves adding players with hometown roots. T.J. Edwards, Cole Kmet, and Jack Sanborn fit that profile as well. The fact that Amegadjie checks all of those boxes makes it easy to understand why Poles is interested. He would make for the perfect developmental project behind Jones and Wright. We already know offensive line coach Chris Morgan is excellent at teaching raw prospects.
Subscribe to the BFR podcast and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
As always, it comes down to where and when the Bears could take him. Projections have Amegadjie going somewhere on day two of the draft. The 2nd round is a popular spot, which is problematic since Ryan Poles traded his to Washington for Sweat. That means the Bears would need him to slip to the 3rd. Don’t forget Jones went in the 5th, so players like him are hard to project. If Poles does end up getting him on the roster, that offensive tackle group could be one of the most talented in recent franchise history.
There is no doubt the OL needed work and still needs to improve. If you’re going to use your eyeballs to be critical, then make sure they’re open and looking at the play. Many weeks they were false starts. Those are the player’s responsibility to clean up. If there is no one better to replace the player with, the coach has his hands tied. Depth to light a fire under their asses to save their jobs is the only way to improve some guys’ performance a lot of the time.
@TGena As usual spot off on your eyeball stats. Off. Penalties Avg. weeks 1-12 3.66 after Bye Off. Penalties Avg. weeks 14-18 2.4 If coaching was the problem, he must have done something right to improve by 33%. Gonna bet the OL coach wasn’t satisfied either. The numbers are still not great, but you said he couldn’t be doing that good of a job if he couldn’t make his guys get better. Uh, hello? I’m sure there is more to those than I found with a cursory review of each week, but I at least used real data not the… Read more »
Dammit, TGena, I was 100% in agreement with you but then you had to ruin it with some childish smarmy insult. DaFug is wrong witchoo? Now, I can’t upvote your comment and help dig you out of that hole. I’ll do the adult thing at least and not downvote you.SMH.
@Tred – the only problem with the preseason ratings Is: They are complete garbage! Larry Borom was the highest rated tackle in the preseason, and you saw how that went when he got real live reps against #1 defenses.
I’ll second it. The Bears OL looked disjointed and took too many penalties last year. Is that all on Chris Morgan? Maybe not. But he’s the coach.