Nick Foles? Nicholas Edward Foles? Is this your king? The fact that the Bears actually gave up a draft pick to bring in Foles and his massive contract while Cam Newton remains a free agent hurts my soul. While we don’t know who will come out on top in the QB competition between Foles and Mitchell Trubisky, Chicago needs to improve the roster around their two underwhelming quarterbacks. You know the drill by now after my mock drafts on the Packers and Lions, I’ll do my best to improve this squad using the Mock Draft Simulator from TheDraftNetwork.com
Outside of quarterback, the biggest need offensively for the Bears is right guard now that Kyle Long has decided to hang up his cleats. But with only two picks available to them in the first four rounds of the draft, it may be hard for Chicago to address this position. Especially since they did sign Germain Ifedi to a one-year deal to temporarily fill this vacancy. Ifedi was been largely an underwhelming right tackle for the Seattle Seahawks for four years, but perhaps kicking inside to guard in a new system will spark a career revival for the former first-round pick. Tight end would have also been a need but the Bears made another perplexing move in free agency, adding Jimmy Graham, who has not had a good season since we landed on the moon or something like that. But since they have big money invested in both Graham and Trey Burton, I don’t see them drafting a tight end in what is a pretty bad class anyway. Wide receiver depth should also be addressed after the team released Taylor Gabriel, leaving Allen Robinson and Anthony Miller atop the depth chart with little else behind them. Riley Ridley and Javon Wims are in-house options to compete for the number three receiver spot, but Chicago should look to add more talent here.
Chicago left some pretty large holes in their secondary in order to accommodate the contracts of Foles, Graham and prized pass-rusher Robert Quinn. Quinn should give the Bears a heck of a one-two punch on the edge along with Khalil Mack, although I do worry about him being a stand-up rusher in Chicago’s 3-4 defense after thriving in a three-point stance last year in Dallas’ 4-3. But for as formidable as the Bears’ front seven looks, the secondary has some holes alongside studs like CB Kyle Fuller and S Eddie Jackson. And those are exactly the two positions I chose to address early in my mock draft:
Round 2, Pick 43: Ashtyn Davis, S, Cal
The thing about this mock draft series is that I do not have the benefit of being able to watch tape on all of these prospects prior to assigning them to teams. There will be times when I mock someone to a team and then ultimately not end up being a fan upon further inspection. Ashtyn Davis is widely regarded as one of the better safeties in this draft but man, I don’t see it. He is definitely an awesome athlete who is often tasked with playing deep middle in Cover-3 looks but he just doesn’t squeeze routes and make plays on the ball the way you would expect someone with his athleticism to do. He is not asked to play man coverage much but there are encouraging reps there. What is most disappointing about Davis is that despite not being the worst tackler, he can be a liability in run support. Too many times players are able to slip out of his grasp or he fails to get to the ball carrier because he gets stuck on blocks. The angles he takes to runners from his deep safety spots are often inconsistent and allow for plays to be more explosive than necessary. Here is an example on 4th and 1 against Washington:
Giving up the first down is one thing, but taking such a poor angle to the ball and allowing this run to go into the end zone is a whole other thing entirely. Davis was not just used in single-high situations, being given half-field, flat and slot responsibilities as well, but that versatility will not be utilized in the NFL if he cannot consistently make plays in run support. Davis’ best fit will be working deep zones in Cover-2 or Cover-3 defenses but he lacks the playmaking ability from those spots that you would like to see and his inability to bring down ball carriers has turned me all the way off on this prospect.
Round 2, Pick 50: Bryce Hall, CB, Virginia
I believe firmly that if Hall did not suffer an ankle injury that limited him to just six games in 2019 that we would be talking about Hall as a first-round prospect. In a time when being able to play many different coverages is the key to success on defense, Hall fits right in. I have seen him play deep third, man-to-man and press all with relative ease. Hall is a guy who sticks to receivers so well that it is hard to find instances of him being targeted. I watched games against Notre Dame and Pittsburgh and only saw Hall get targeted twice in those games, with one coming on a coverage breakdown that I’m not totally sure was Bryce’s fault and a pass interference call that could have gone either way offensively or defensively. And one of Hall’s best traits is his run support, showing the ability to take good angles, shed blockers and make strong tackles. Here is a good example of it against Pittsburgh:
If Hall is indeed the pick at either 43 or 50 for Chicago, I have little doubt that he will be the odds-on favorite to be a starter opposite Kyle Fuller at corner.
Round 5, Pick 163: Quintez Cephus, WR, Wisconsin
The Bears have to wait for 112 picks to pass before they get to pick again after Round Two. I really hope Nick Foles was worth it. There were plenty of options here at receiver to pick from but I was really excited to check out Quintez Cephus. Top cornerback in the nation Jeffrey Okudah was on record saying that Cephus was the toughest man he had to cover this year, which is high praise indeed. It becomes pretty clear why Quintez is such a tough draw for defenders: Physicality. Cephus is such a great route runner and his footwork is a big part of it. Every step seems deliberate and despite not being the most athletic guy in the world, he is able to create separation by being technical in his movement. And what happens when he does not manage to separate from a defender? That’s where the physicality comes in. You will constantly see Cephus hand fighting with corners and boxing them out to make catches. Take this touchdown against Iowa as an example:
Cephus gets a great release off the line using little stutter steps, gets outside the corner, comes back to the ball, makes a combative catch then shoves the defensive back off of him and scoots away for a score. His lack of long speed may limit him to being a slot receiver only at the next level, but he could easily have a Cooper Kupp-like impact on an offense. He is a really nice sleeper prospect that could make a big impact in Matt Nagy's offense.
Round 6, Pick 196: Calvin Throkmorton, OG, Oregon
Calvin Throckmorton (great name) is an interesting guard prospect that could be worth developing behind Germain Ifedi. He played at tackle in college and will have to likely kick inside because of a lack of length and mobility. Good deveopmental prospect though.
Round 6, Pick 200: Trevis Gipson, EDGE, Tulsa
The Bears really lack depth behind starting EDGE players Khalil Mack and Robert Quinn. Gipson will give them a nice rotational option behind their talented starters.
Round 7, Pick 226: John Reid, CB, Penn State
Reid will be a guy that people get tired of me mocking in the later rounds and guess what? I don't care. Bears slot CB Buster Skrine will be 31-years-old at the start of the season and Chicago should be looking to add a younger option to the position that can push to start later on down the line.
Round 7, Pick 233: Garrett Marino, DL, UAB
The Bears did lose some defensive line depth when they lost Nick Williams to the Detroit Lions. Marino will step in and provide depth if he manages to make the 53-man roster.
Sorry Bears fans, it looks like I whiffed on the Ashtyn Davis pick. Hopefully he ends up being a better pro than he was a college player. But you can take solace in the Bryce Hall pick as I think he will easily outperform his draft slot. Also, Quintez Cephus will be another strong receiving option for whomever "wins" the QB competition. I am really just hoping Nick Foles wins so Trey Burton can throw a touchdown pass to him again. Windy Special anyone?...I'll work on a better name I swear.
By: Daniel Hower
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