dawhizz

Also saw the had CB Cory Trice from Purdue in today.

Pick swap of like 15 spots in the 7th round and the Rams pay a lot of the salary. Definition of a “nothing to lose” trade.

I feel like I've looked at so many rankings and evaluations at this point that I can make a pretty good case for or against just about anyone in the draft, but here's where I'm at on a hopeful/realistic mock draft for the Bears: 9) Paris Johnson, OT, Ohio State - Biggest need if we are trying to set Justin Fields up for success next year and checks all the boxes as far as character, length, athleticism, and versatility. 53) Felix Anudike-Uzomah, DE, Kansas State - The Bears need an edge in the first four picks. I could probably make a case for a lot of guys here, but FAU seems to have the best combination of production, length, and speed while also having the size to hold up as a 4-3 DE. 61) Clark Phillips III, CB, Utah - Again, there's lots of CBs in this range I like, and maybe the CB the Bears draft depends a little on whether they see Gordon fitting best outside or at nickel going forward, but I'm hedging a bit here by taking Phillips, who can definitely play nickel but might be just feisty enough to play outside too. 64) AT Perry, WR, Wake Forest - Adding DJ Moore is great, but they are also an injury to DJ Moore away from having the exact same WR group as last year. Lots of the 2nd/3rd round WRs are the small speedy type and I'd prefer to give those reps to Velus Jones going forward (though I do really like Tank Dell), so I'm going to go with Perry, because the Bears don't really have a developmental X receiver on the roster, Perry's basically George Pickens physically, and the Bears passed on Pickens last year and shouldn't do it again. 103) Moro Ojomo, DT, Texas - I'm not real sold on the 3Ts when we get out of the first round, but Ojomo is young enough and disruptive enough to warrant a pick here hoping he can contribute on rotation and grow into the role. 133) Ricky Stromberg, C, Arkansas - Between Whitehair, Patrick, and Kramer I'm not sure OC is enough of a need to go with early, but Stromberg seems to have the strength and movement skills to maybe push one of those guys out and maybe even for a starting role. 136) Cory Trice, CB, Purdue - The CB depth chart is pretty iffy, so I'll be happy to spend another pick on a tough prototype press corner who can project to the outside. 148) Ji'Ayir Brown, S, Penn State - I'm glad Eddie Jackson had a partial bounce-back year last year, but I'm still not sold on him at that price going forward, and our only back-up at this point is Elijah Hicks, so let's reunite Brisker with Brown, who can play either safety spot, play in sub-packages, and be a special teams demon. 218) Dorian Thompson-Robinson, QB, UCLA - There are some rumblings he will go earlier than this, but we've heard that about a lot of QBs in the past. We are obviously changing our QB profile so he fits well with Fields and Walker, and I'd certainly rather have him running the offense in an emergency situation than Peterman. 258) Xazvian Valladay, RB, Arizona State - Valladay runs a bit upright but he shows enough speed, hands, and elusiveness producing in a big conference to push Ebner on the roster.

I still feel like PJJ is the clear pick. I don’t see a box he doesn’t check for them: - Familiarity with Fields - Character - LT/RT flexibility - Long arms (like Braxton) - Athletic mover - Aggressive finisher

Doesn’t seem like fit to me. My understanding is that the offense requires more mobile linemen. This dude ain’t that.

Another story on the trade. https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/36093395/what-nfl-gm-number-1-pick-draft

I don’t necessarily agree with all these takes, but they do make some sense so given the Bears needs there I thought I’d pass them along. https://jonledyard.substack.com/p/2023-nfl-draft-edge-defender-rankings

I guess Doug Kramer is kind of the X factor at OC. He was on IR all last year but when Patrick first went down, Kramer played over Mustipher. Do they still like him? Was he able to bulk up a bit, which made people thought he would need to do in the NFL? If so, he’s always seemed to have the mental make-up, so maybe he’s more ready to compete for starter reps than a day two or three rookie would be. We certainly don’t need another body at OC if we are keeping Whitehair, Patrick, and Kramer for now (and at least one of them is probably getting cut). Maybe you get a day 3 OL who can play both OC and OG just to hedge your bets.

Not coming in as a 25-year-old rookie.

Kancey’s size is comparable to Sapp and Donald coming out, but his arms are literally two inches shorter (Donald and Sapp were both right around 32 3/4”, Kancey’s are 30 5/8”). Will that matter in the NFL? I guess we’ll find out.

Of the guys you mention: - I really like Bresee, but that would require a trade down. - Having a hard time coming around on Kancey. Small + short arms is a lot to overcome in the NFL. - Mid round guys I like are Pickens, Young, and Ojomo. I don’t really feel like Keion White or Tuli are big enough for 3T. - I’ve heard some like Karl Brooks at 3T, but I can’t quite reconcile his level of competition with the others in consideration.

Sharing this because Teven used this tweet to reply to someone asking where he was going to play next year - so Jenkins at LG and Davis at RG.

My concern with Wilson is he’s slow off the snap. Even in his highlights where he ends up making the play, he’s the last guy moving on that line. On one hand, that’s concerning because that will hinder his effectiveness at the next level. On the other, if you can fix that, he could be even more dominant? The question is, is that correctable? He’s a senior, why hadn’t he fixed it yet? Just something I keep noticing. https://youtu.be/j4TKPD4eJvQ

Paris Johnson’s top criteria for deciding where he wants to go is . . . Taxes? Not sure if this is refreshing (someone who is being honest/thinking about the economics of his situation) or alarming. Make if it what you will. https://247sports.com/nfl/chicago-bears/Article/2023-NFL-draft-prospect-names-Chicago-Bears-among-top-landing-spots-207917054/?utm_source=247Sports%20Newsletter&utm_medium=Newsletter&utm_campaign=230407_114514_ChicagoBears&utm_content=Link&eid=82e1bbfad4a16d3be3e1022478e34b4c85496458d3398797f7b08412b002dcbf

So, someone sell me on JSN. I’ve watched the highlights. I know he outperformed Olave and Wilson when they were together, I’ve even heard the Ohio State WR coach put him above those guys. But I just don’t quite see it yet. He’s not the big. He’s not that fast. He’s got good agility but doesn’t seem to be particularly elusive in the open field. I see him run a lot of crossing routes where he gets hit right away and sideline routes where he gets out of bounds. He’s obviously got really good hands, which isn’t nothing, do I guess the comp is probably Davonte Adams, but there are a lot of guys similar athletically to Davante Adams, so I’m having trouble coming around on using a top ten pick on him. Make your case.

Did some dealing with this one. I think Bresee can play 3T. 18. Bryan Bresee DT Clemson 55. Derick Hall EDGE Auburn 61. Blake Freeland OT BYU 62. Tyrique Stevenson CB Miami (FL) 64. Kayshon Boutte WR LSU 66. Sam LaPorta TE Iowa 96. Luke Wypler OC Ohio State 103. Zacch Pickens DT South Carolina 133. Tre'Vius Hodges-Tomlinson CB TCU 148. Jammie Robinson S Florida State 218. Keaton Mitchell RB East Carolina

Tony Pauline is usually pretty plugged in, so note what he said in his recent update of his Big Board on Kancey: https://www.profootballnetwork.com/paulines-big-board-top-players-2023-nfl-draft/ Defensive Line I have Calijah Kancey graded as a second-round pick, but I can attest to the fact some teams have a first-round grade on the Pitt junior. The big issue is that Kancey is a scheme-specific prospect as a one-gap 3-technique tackle. Teams running that sort of system believe Kancey is a top-60 prospect. Otherwise, I’ve been getting third and fourth-round grades on

Yeah, I’m so torn on him. I get the Aaron Donald comparisons, but also can’t help thinking of Sheldon Rankins, which was kind of the first undersized “next Aaron Donald” who the Saints took early in the first and never panned out and even he had 25 pounds on Kancey.

Carter is visiting the Bears today. He’s also apparently declining to visit any team outside the top ten. Wondering how people feel about Calijah Kancey from Pitt if Jalen Carter is either gone before 9 or the Bears aren’t comfortable with him for whatever reason. I can’t get a hold on Kancey’s value in the draft - I’ve seen top ten, I’ve seen mid first, I’ve seen late first, I’ve even seen second round. He’s undersized but seems like a perfect disruptive 3T, which Eberflus keeps saying is needed in his defense and remains unaddressed. The Aaron Donald comps are simultaneously unfair, intriguing, and probably misleading. How would you feel about him at 9? How far would you be willing to trade down and still think you could get him? Do you not want him at all?

I would guess one of those is Tippman -he’s probably the best center on the move and my understanding is that the offense wants those kind of guys. The other maybe Wypler? The Bears certainly seem to be doing their due diligence in the next tier of centers - I feel like I’ve heard them linked to Stromberg as well as Juice Scruggs and Jake Andrews, so maybe they like the veterans like Whitehair and Patrick and wait until day three to take a center, or maybe they are just seeing if there’s any day three guys they like more than Kramer and end up deciding on just rolling with the guys they have.

I want a speed guy. I don’t know that I want to draft a RB early enough for Achane, but a day three pick on one of Sean Tucker, Deuce Vaughn, or Keaton Mitchell would be good with me.

I might prefer a straight up C over Mauch, but otherwise I’d be pretty thrilled with this.

Carter feels like the only potential world beater at 3T in this draft, but I feel like there are going to be names who can fill that role in rounds 2-4 that you can be pretty happy about without needing to trade into the lower 1st/early 2nd for someone like Bresee or Kancey (neither of whom I’m particularly sold on). Between the quick DTs like Pickens, Dexter, Ojomo, Turner, and Young and the bigger edges that can probably play the 3T inside like Tuli, Adebawore, Brooks, maybe Mike Morris, you should at least find someone who can split reps with Justin Jones and develop.