There's a guy out there that I have had my eye on as a possible dark horse candidate to be the next WR drafted by the Chicago Bears. Given the recent signing of Devin Thomas, it's looking like the Bears are going to go away from a WR, atleast in the early rounds of the draft. This may or may not be the case, this could be a clever ploy at a smoke screen, but for the purpose of this topic, lets just assume it's not. This is a player that I think might be worth drafting in the 4th round or so, and just happened to be arguably the most productive WR in college football over the past 5-10 years. I'm talking about a player who caught 131 passes and 15 touchdowns his JR year and was well on his way to duplicating that season this past year before he got hurt. I'm talking about a guy that's been in a PRO system for 4 seasons where he's been the #1 receiver and thrived in it. I'm talking about a guy that for his career, combined for 349 catches, 46 touchdowns, and 4586 yards with a senior year cut short by 4 games with an ACL injury. The player I'm talking about is Ryan Broyles.

 

Obviously the reason Broyles slips in the draft is because of his knee injury that he suffered late in the year for Oklahoma and hasn't gotten completely healthy yet. I figure if he is still available late in the 3rd round or possibly even in the 4th, would he be worth a pick? Here are his Strengths and weaknesses according to NFL.com

 

Strengths

 

Despite his stature, Broyles gets off the line of scrimmage well when given a free release or a chance to use a jab step that allows him to stem and get up field quickly. His overall football savvy and athletic ability should allow him to adjust smoothly to play at the next level. Although he can make catches across the middle, he is most effective in space or when being covered man-to-man, as he displays an uncanny ability to get open. Broyles is an incredible catcher. He can torque his body in any way necessary to secure balls thrown near him. He uses his body control to turn and secure the ball. Despite his small frame, he can turn and run through arm tackles at times. He is a great option as a short receiver, which allows him to utilize his quickness and agility to separate from defenders and secure a catch. Broyles has produced consistently in the Big 12, his transitional phase should be short, especially if he plays in the slot.

 

Weaknesses

 

Broyles is undersized and has struggled securing catches in space throughout his career. If cornerbacks get their hands on him at the line, he can struggle to break away and get into his route. It will be interesting to watch him work within an NFL system given the route tree he was running at Oklahoma which was somewhat basic. The torn ACL that cost him the ,end of the 2011 season may limit his already average straight-line speed and raise concerns about his durability.

 

http://www.nfl.com/combine/profiles/ryan-broyles?id=2532807

 

Here's another little nugget. He is strong for his size.

Strong upper body, led all Oklahoma receivers with a bench press of 310 pounds, put up 21 reps of 225 lbs.

Broyles is a risk after the knee injury and I don't think we have the luxury to pickup someone like him unless it was more of like a 6th or 7th round pick.

Broyles is a risk after the knee injury and I don't think we have the luxury to pickup someone like him unless it was more of like a 6th or 7th round pick.

Maybe, but a 4th round pick is good value for a guy that was one of the best receivers in college football before he got hurt. I'd strongly consider it if I were the Bears. I know he's started running already and is ahead of schedule in terms of when he will be ready to play.

Maybe, but a 4th round pick is good value for a guy that was one of the best receivers in college football before he got hurt. I'd strongly consider it if I were the Bears. I know he's started running already and is ahead of schedule in terms of when he will be ready to play.

 

He's good but not what the Bears need at WR too little.

He's good but not what the Bears need at WR too little.

So? The Bears have their big target now. 2 if you count the TE slot. They can go for total skill now if they're still trying to add WR. Marshall and Davis are the big near-the-end-zone targets.

So? The Bears have their big target now. 2 if you count the TE slot. They can go for total skill now if they're still trying to add WR. Marshall and Davis are the big near-the-end-zone targets.

At what ever spot they draft a WR they need to take the best one available, it doesnt matter if he is tall.

At what ever spot they draft a WR they need to take the best one available, it doesnt matter if he is tall.

 

Yes i agree with drafting the best one available but we still could get a taller WR to have even more of a mismatch in the red zone with Davis 6'7, Marshall 6'4 and Thomas 6'2 and the rookie at 6'3 or 6'4. This gives us multiple targets to throw to instead of just trying to feed Marshall. The Lions use Johnson at 6'5 this way and he is a beast and no one else that scares people, but now we have a beast of our own and could add another one and will be dangerous this year.

Yes i agree with drafting the best one available but we still could get a taller WR to have even more of a mismatch in the red zone with Davis 6'7, Marshall 6'4 and Thomas 6'2 and the rookie at 6'3 or 6'4. This gives us multiple targets to throw to instead of just trying to feed Marshall. The Lions use Johnson at 6'5 this way and he is a beast and no one else that scares people, but now we have a beast of our own and could add another one and will be dangerous this year.

If the Bears find a tall WR they actually like who is a reasonable value with one of their picks, obviously they should go for it, but if there's a 5'10" guy sitting there in the 4th round who they think will be Johnny Knox or better, then passing on him because they want height would be a mistake.

If the Bears find a tall WR they actually like who is a reasonable value with one of their picks, obviously they should go for it, but if there's a 5'10" guy sitting there in the 4th round who they think will be Johnny Knox or better, then passing on him because they want height would be a mistake.

 

And I agree with you about passing on the shorter guy might be a mistake but we have too many shorter guys already with Knox, Hester, Weems, Bennett, Komar,Saz......we look like a bunch of Smurfs.........lol

Let's see here:

 

"he is most effective in space"

 

"has struggled securing catches in space throughout his career"

 

I found the paradox amusing.

 

Regardless, he sounds like Devin Hester who we already have and who we already pay good money to. Broyles might have better hands than Hester but it's hard to tell from the above comments.

 

One thing we all have to keep in mind is Emery's quote on the day he was hired: "It's a big man's game." I don't think he looks at every player through that lens but let's look at his first foray into FA: Weems (specialty player and small), Costanzo, Jason Campbell, Brandon Marshall, Devin Thomas, and Michael Bush. It's very early in the Emery dynasty and there is not enough data here to determine if there is a trend or not. Plus, each of these players have their own positives relative to the other FAs that made them a good choice for our roster. However, I don't think we can entirely dismiss that quote either and we need to keep it in mind when considering who we might draft or sign in FA. So if I had to guess if Emery would take a chance on a guy like Broyles coming off of injury, I'd say no and not when we already have Hester there.

And I agree with you about passing on the shorter guy might be a mistake but we have too many shorter guys already with Knox, Hester, Weems, Bennett, Komar,Saz......we look like a bunch of Smurfs.........lol

That's really no longer the case though. The Bearz have the size they need. Thomas, Marshall, and Davis give the Bears substantial amounts of size to go along with the names you just mentioned.