First Round
MIAMI — My flight on Thursday night took off around 7:40pm EST. Having to travel the night of the first round of the NFL Draft sucked because it’s such an exciting and anticipated event.
But luckily for me, I didn’t miss any of the action because the second we got above 10,000 feet, I logged in to the woeful excuse for Wi-Fi that is “Gogo Inflight Internet” and into Twitter in time to see that Roger Goodell had placed the Cleveland Browns on the clock.
A few agonizingly long minutes later, the selection was announced: Myles Garrett. Surprise, surprise.
The San Francisco 49ers were now on the clock, and the REAL draft proceedings were about to begin.
After months and months of mock drafts, every scenario for the Chicago Bears had been studied. Picking Solomon Thomas. Picking Jamal Adams. Picking whichever QB they had at 3. Trading down. You name it.
But of course, literally the one scenario nobody thought of, the Bears trading UP, was the one that I saw emerge on Twitter. Bears swap spots with the 49ers?? And they give up WHAT to trade up??
It has to be a quarterback, right? You can’t trade that much to move up one spot and not take a quarterback. So it has to be Deshaun Watson. That’s whom the Bears had been linked to so closely for the many months leading up to the draft. Watson, the program-elevator. Watson, the leader. Watson, the winner.
Alas, Goodell announced: Mitchell Trubisky. SURPRISE, SURPRISE!
And immediately, Gogo Inflight Nonsense crapped out on me. But it didn’t matter, because I was really, really, really, happy. Not only was Trubisky my favorite QB in the draft and the best fit for Chicago’s offense, but it was clear that Ryan Pace identified his quarterback of the future and decided not to f*ck around with his opportunity. He did what he had to do to get the guy he was willing to bet his career on. If the Bears were going to take a QB, I wanted someone they fully believed in. The trade they made proved that they did.
There have been conflicting reports about how many, if any, offers the Niners had to move up to the second spot. And it’s unclear whether or not those teams would have selected Trubisky. But it doesn’t matter. Pace wanted his guy, and in the land of rumors and falsehood (the draft), you do what you have to do to get your guy. There was NO guarantee Trubisky would have been available if the Bears had stayed put. And Pace wasn’t willing to take that chance.
Remember Aaron Donald? The Bears thought they had him because the Rams had a loaded defensive line and there was no way they could take Donald, right? Well, they did. And the Bears panicked and took Kyle Fuller … which really hasn’t worked out so well.
Was the price to move up steep? Depends on your viewpoint. This was a deep draft, so giving up picks seemed like a counterintuitive move. But nothing matters in this league if you don’t have a quarterback. And the Bears needed a quarterback. And if you don’t take chances like the one Pace did, then you don’t get a quarterback. If Trubisky pans out like Pace believes he will, then nobody will care about what they traded for him. All they’ll care about is that the Bears finally have their quarterback.
Second Round
The Bears attempted to recoup some draft picks from their Trubisky trade by packaging their 7th-rounder and trading down nine spots with the Arizona Cardinals, picking up a 4th-rounder and 6th-rounder, along with a 4th-rounder next year in the process.
When the Bears’ turn came to pick, most expected a defensive back to help out their beleaguered secondary. But instead they took a Division II Tight End from Ashland named Adam Shaheen.
On the surface, this seems like a head-scratcher. But Pace confirmed Shaheen was by far their highest-graded player available at the time, and that he wasn’t going to pick a defensive back just because it was a need. But it worked out, because tight end was a pretty big need as well. And when you go beyond the surface, you see that Shaheen is an animal.
A former basketball player, his ability to high-point the ball is the first thing that jumps out. Also, the dude is massive, measuring in at 6’6”, 278 lbs. Oh, and for a man of that size, he can absolutely fly. He’s a mismatch all over the field, and despite playing against poorer competition in Division II, his skillset gives him the ability to contribute to the Bears’ passing attack from the get-go.
His size and ability elicits comparisons to Jimmy Graham. Getting someone like Graham on offense in the second round? Yes, please.
Fourth Round
The first pick the Bears made in the fourth round allayed concerns that they were going to ignore the secondary. They traded up five spots to take Eddie Jackson, a free-safety from Alabama. Jackson has a nose for the football and great ball skills. He also has kick/punt return skills.
With Jackson in the fold, the Bears have added a lot of depth to their secondary this offseason. While Tracy Porter was released, they added Quintin Demps, Prince Amukamara, Marcus Cooper, and re-signed Johnthan Banks. Adding Jackson to the safety mix, along with potentially moving Deiondre Hall and Kyle Fuller to safety, provides depth. It’ll be an interesting battle this training camp.
With their second pick in the fourth round, the Bears took Tarik Cohen. A running back from a small school when they just drafted Jordan Howard last year?
Hell yeah. Cohen is Darren Sproles 2.0 – an electric playmaker who is dangerous every time he touches the ball. The Bears haven’t had anyone like this on their roster in a while. He’s shifty, agile, fast, you name it. He’s going to be a third down weapon like no other.
If you’re keeping tabs at home, Pace is clearly trying to build the New Orleans Saints famous offense here in Chicago. See below. If it pans out, watch out.
Conclusion
Overall, Ryan Pace’s draft was about athletes with high ceilings that could shape this franchise’s future for the next decade plus. Despite a supposed defensively rich draft, the Bears took four offensive players and one defensive player.
Why? Well, for one, that’s how their board stacked up. Pace has long stated that he’s going to take the best player available no matter what. And after the drafts he’s put together his first two years, who are we to argue with his scouting or strategy?
I’m also glad that that’s how his board stacked up – the offense needed way more help. The defense, even with a graveyard full of injuries, finished middle of the pack last season and kept the sputtering offense in many games. Sure, they ran out of gas towards the end. But if you were on the field cleaning up after your offense’s mistakes every two minutes, wouldn’t you?
It’s easy to look at the potential opportunity cost on the defensive side of the ball with more established names that were left on the board. But look, no draft pick is ever guaranteed to work out. Every single pick is a crapshoot. Some are better bets than others, but NOBODY is a sure thing. That includes Myles Garrett.
That’s why the argument about the Bears needing to take the stacked defensive talent when available holds no water. They are all college talents who haven’t done anything in the NFL yet, and nobody knows how they will turn out. They all might suck. Most of them will suck.
That’s why, for example, Pace trading multiple mid-round picks to get his quarterback of the future in Round 1 shouldn’t scare you. The likelihood of missing on Trubisky is just as high as missing on anyone he may have taken in the later rounds. But the potential reward?
If Pace hits on Trubisky, the Bears are not only relevant, but contenders for the next 10-15 years. That’s not the case if he’d have taken, say, Solomon Thomas or Jamal Adams. None of those players mean sh*t without a quarterback. So if you’re going to take a chance on someone, take it on a quarterback you believe in. And then, in order to avoid a Jay Cutler-like death spiral, get that quarterback some help.
That’s exactly what Pace did.
