Tarik Cohen has established himself as one of the most exciting offensive weapons going in the NFL thus far. A lot of people criticized Chicago for the decision. Why would they draft a running back when they clearly had so many other roster needs? The short answer is GM Ryan Pace. He’s a man driven by a simple philosophy. He will draft the best player available, regardless of position.
The Bears took Cohen in the fourth round, all 5’6″ of him. There were rumblings from the scouting community that the Bears may have gotten a steal. Cohen was already drawing comparisons to former Pro Bowler Darren Sproles. Those were backed up with flashes of his uncanny quickness, athleticism and speed in the preseason.
Then he lit up the Atlanta Falcons in the opener and people realized the Bears had something special. Cohen has become a weapon defenses have to game plan for. Never mind the lingering threat of Jordan Howard. What’s amazing about all this isn’t that the Bears outfoxed everybody when taking him. It’s that he almost wasn’t the back they ended up drafting.
