AZ54

I'm surprised at how well he tracks the ball and then goes up after it. He's small like Gabriel but if he gets into his stride he's fast. As a late Rd pick he's a decent cheaper version of Hamler and in that context I like the value. The big difference is learning how to run routes in this offense.

This last pick makes me think we're moving Denmark to Safety. If true, I'm ok with it because it's what I wanted to do last year. He loves to hunt and hit around the LOS.

Typical Y-TE stuff but if he can get us first downs and the occasional chunk play that's pretty good. Use the U-TE for the deeper stuff and outside the hashes.

Looks like another Senior Bowl pick based on how well he performed against higher level competition there. I see highlights of him against Clemson too. https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2884073-kindle-vildor-nfl-draft-2020-scouting-report-for-chicago-bears-pick

It will be for Skrine.

For sure he needs to add strength and improve his craft. He's never going to be more than a depth piece. I'm not sure I see him moving inside though. Whoever we just picked at 163 it was another very fast decision.

Now go get me Brooks at S and we can really have some fun with this D.

LOL.. I've been mocking this guy to the Bears in the 5th repeatedly. IMO he's a solid depth addition on the edge for us and fans will like the passion he has for the game.

Looking at that I'd say Detroit did well. Okuda is a shutdown corner and Swift is a good RB. I liked Okwara and think that's a good pick as well. GB is a head scratcher with the trade up for a QB and then reaching in the 2nd Rd on a 4th Rd RB. I liked Dillon but not at 62. I liked Deguara too but he's a complimentary piece to a position and seems like they went a round early on him too. I really like the fact they did nothing to improve on defense. I agree on the Vikings: good draft but more or less just replacing all the parts they just lost.

I really didn't understand what the Raiders were doing there. I"d be very leary of using a first round pick on a guy that a year or so earlier was considering walking away from football. Then when you consider there were plenty of other very good CB options on the board.

I hope not. I would trade Leno and Cohen.

His versatility in all phases will be a very welcome addition. Plus I like the fact he's already good at selling the block fake before going out on his route. Just a sign that he's already thinking about the details of playing TE instead of just being an athlete on the field. I think it was someone here that said he's not a player who stands out in any one aspect but he's good in all of them. He came out early too so there's plenty of room for growth if he works at it, and he has Graham to learn from. At a minimum Graham and his work ethic will be a good mentor and role model for Kmet. He's not real twitchy but he's smooth enough on the move to get open. I didn't realize he ran a 4.7 forty at the combine. That doesn't really show up on film too often but as you said it could be a sign that as he dedicates himself more to football he'll get better. I thought we'd go more towards a U TE later in the draft but it looks like Horsted stays as the backup U behind Graham.

We've drafted a CB who is going to immediately fit right into this backfield. He might not be the most athletic (maybe more quick than fast) but listen to Bryant McFadden talk about what he brings to the table. This kid will be playing early this season. This is the kind of CB you want playing behind a good pass rush.

We're losing our edge... no dedicated theads for our draft picks? Local kid, grew up as a Bears fan. What are we getting?

I'm not totally surprised we took Kmet but after signing Jimmy Graham it seems we could have filled another need early. If he finally gives the offense the legit two TE sets we've been looking for the last two years then it's worth it. Trubisky and Foles were both at their best with reliable TEs targets. Kmet was one of few inline TEs in the draft, if not the only one, who could help the pass blocking as a rookie and still be a good receiving threat. I like Jaylon Johnson. His surgery might require the Bears to let him start the season on the bench but as far as talent level goes he's got nearly everything you could ask for. He's also a fit to replace Prince as a press corner to compliment Fuller's off-coverage technique. https://www.thedraftnetwork.com/prospect-rankings Has the athleticism to match up with anybody. Possesses excellent speed to stay on top of WR’s route downfield. Needs to improve his technique in avoiding getting stacked. Mirror & Close: Reactionary quickness is elite. Footwork is well coordinated with his eyes. Seamlessly stays on hip pocket of WR in and out of route breaks. Hip fluidity is easily recognizable. Ball Skills: Has a playmaker’s mindset. Comfortable playing w/back to the ball. Easily tracks over shoulder and is a consistent finisher at the catch point. Needs to get stronger to avoid box outs by bigger WRs. Overview: Sudden athlete with high ceiling as a lockdown CB. Sticky on the hip pocket and doesn’t lack confidence or aggressiveness. Average size/length hurts his ability to contest every catch point but he is scheme flexible & best in press man on the boundary.

...and special thank you to Green Bay! Your next pick is at 62 overall.

This is awesome. There are 15 players I'd be happy to add to our roster. Per NFL.com the best remaining are below. If they have an asterisk I'd be happy to add them to the roster. We have 10th and 17th picks in Rd 2 and I've got * on 15 players. Others here have their own * on players like Shenault...fair enough. Certainly there will be at least two players not on my wish list who will be selected before we get to 50 and likely several more. We can easily trade back at either 43 or 50 and still find someone I really like. I fully expect Dallas to trade up for either a CB or Edge. Seattle has two picks in Rd 2 and could move one to get to the middle of the round since they have two 4th Rd picks. Pairing their 59+101 equals value at #50. That's a bit farther back than I'd like to go but it depends on who is still on the board at 50. OTOH that pick at 101 is very enticing because it could become someone like Antonio Gibson. 1) Swift RB rank 16 2) Blacklock DT 19 3) McKinney S 22 * 4) Epenesa DE/Edge 26 * (I don't think this is likely and maybe not even wise but it might just be too good to be true to add a pass rusher like him to the rotation) 5) Higgins WR 27 * 6) J. Johnson CB 29 * 7) Gross-Matos Edge 30 8) Marlon Davidson Edge 33 9) Zack Baun LB 34 * (not a popular choice but I still can't have too many pass rushers and he fits in well as rotation among Mack/Quinn since he can cover too. I also think at times we could drop into a really good 4-3 alignment with Baun/Trev/Smith which lets Quinn play to his strengths. Versatility week to week to matchup however we want - we could do similar with a big S like Chinn) 10) Johnathan Taylor RB 35 * so fast he has his own thread here 11) Shenault WR 36 (injuries are too much of a concern for me at this point) 12) Dobbins RB 37 13) Josh Jones 39 ** (the anti-Leno) 14) Delpit S 40 * 15) Kmet TE 41 * ( I won't hate the pick but not ideal IMO) 16) Kristian Fulton CB 43 * 17) Chinn S 44 * 18) Madubuike DT 45 19) Mims WR 46 * (not ideal his film didn't match the measureables IMO) 20) Winfield S 47 * (not my favorite prospect but still a good addition) 21) Pittman WR 48 * 22) Trevon Diggs CB 49 * 23) Hurts QB 50

Khalil Mack for Josh Jacobs and Ngakoue?

We got two years of production out of Mack.

If this goes down I'll be LMAO. They could have just paid Mack. Not that I'm complaining because I still like having Mack. https://www.walterfootball.com/nflhotpress/article/Raiders,-Jaguars-Close-to-Ngakoue-Trade

OTOH if you are in Burton's spot wouldn't you prefer to wait a bit before signing for your best chance of passing a physical? It's a weak TE class this year no reason to think if he's returning to form that Burton wouldn't find work after the draft.

I don't know, I think it's likely he's gone just before us. Drafts are always odd in that each seems to have a run on different positions early. This year it could easily be OTs who go in a bunch since WR, CB and others have good depth later. On the other hand a weak position like TE might see someone reach early in the 2nd for Kmet.

Keep in mind on draft day it's helpful for other teams to know there's already one player who is available. We're talking about deals at the far back end of the draft. For example: would prefer next years 6th Rd pick or taking a crack at seeing if you can develop Shaheen? Picks late in any draft are likely practice squad players and no matter what we think of Shaheen he is still more of a known commodity than any 7th Rd TE. I'm not saying it's likely anyone will take him just that he might be a small part of a package deal if some team wants a bit more depth at the TE position in camp.

My 5 most likely for Fri night: Jalen Reagor WR Brandon Aiyuk WR Jeremy Chinn S Josh Jones OT Antonio Gibson RB/WR (trade back)

He can make the throws but he still struggles to read defenses. I do not understand why that will improve when it didn't under two of the best college coaches? This isn't a Trubisky situation where he only played one year. I do agree that Prescott is a decent comp for him, Watson exhibited far more leadership as a starter in college.