1st Round - #20 - Kyle Long, OG, Oregon - Grade: B, I thought this was a little early for Long, but I still love that he is on our team. He is going to bring a little attitude to the line with Slauson. I can see this grade moving up to an A by the end of the season, but right now I will stick with a B because I though a trade down and picking up two players would be better value than just one pick.
2nd Round - #50 - Jon Bostic, LB, Florida - Grade: C+, I felt like this was another reach at #50, but without a 3rd rounder, they didn’t have many other options. I like Bostic, I just felt of all the picks, this one was the biggest reach. For me, it is a C+ as it fills a need, but in terms of value, I just felt trading down was a better option since we didn't do that at #20. If he starts as LB at some point this season, then this grade will go up, but if he is only on Special Teams and as a Sub, then C+ seems about right for pick #50.
4th Round - #117 - Khaseem Greene, LB, Rutgers, Grade: A+, Huge value pick here and fills out the LB need completely after the Bostic pick. This guy was a possible 2nd rounder and was a great pick at #117. This may be the pick of the draft for the Bears. This also provides some insurance if Bostic, Williams, or Anderson don’t work out. It would be nice if Bostic and Greene anchored the LB Corps for the next decade.
5th Round - #163 - Jordan Mills, OT, Louisiana Tech, Grade: A-, Another value pick, Emery redeems himself for the first two rounds with two straight value picks that also fill a need. I love these types of picks. Mills was a 3rd rounder taken in the late 5th. I also like it because we traded down 10 slots to get him and picked up a 7th to boot.
6th Round - #188 - Cornelius Washington, DE, Georgia, Grade: A, Another great selection by Emery. I was not even thinking about DE at this point, but with Wootton in the last year of his contract, and Peppers owed a lot of money, this provides some insurance and competition for SMC.
7th Round - #236 - Marguess Wilson, WR, Washington St., Grade: A-, What is not to like about a late 7th round pick who could easily be a 4th to 5th rounder any other year. Also, this was a free pick after the trade in the 5th, and it fills a need. Hard to argue with that.
Overall Grade: A- . This draft really took shape on Day 3, after Day 2 this was a C+ draft (without a 3rd). Taking the rounds off the picks, you gotta love getting Khaseem Greene, Jordan Mills, Cornelius Washington, and Marguess Wilson on Day 3. Emery did a great job addressing needs with very solid players who will contribute early and often. My only negative to the draft is Bostic at #50, I can understand not wanting to lose Long at #20, but I thought Bostic could’ve been had at 60-65, and I was surprised we didn’t drop back there and pick up a 3rd or 4th rounder. If we can address DT, CB, and backup QB, I think we will be going into this season in a lot better shape than last year.
