Dec 30, 2012; Detroit, MI, USA; Chicago Bears defensive end Julius Peppers (90) during the third quarter against the Detroit Lions at Ford Field. Chicago won 26-24. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
Defensive Line
| 94 | McBride, Turk | DE | 6-2 | 278 | 27 | 7 | Tennessee |
| 99 | McClellin, Shea | DE | 6-3 | 260 | 23 | 2 | Boise St. |
| 67 | Moore, Kyle | DE | 6-6 | 263 | 26 | 5 | USC |
| 95 | Ozougwu, Cheta | DE | 6-2 | 255 | 24 | 2 | Rice |
| 90 | Peppers, Julius | DE | 6-7 | 287 | 33 | 12 | North Carolina |
| 91 | Whiteside, Aston | DE | 6-2 | 255 | 23 | 1 | Abilene Christian |
| 98 | Wootton, Corey | DE | 6-6 | 270 | 25 | 4 | Northwestern |
| 93 | Collins, Nate | DT | 6-2 | 296 | 25 | 4 | Virginia |
| 75 | Fluellen, Andre | DT | 6-2 | 302 | 28 | 6 | Florida State |
| 69 | Melton, Henry | DT | 6-3 | 295 | 26 | 5 | Texas |
| 92 | Paea, Stephen | DT | 6-1 | 300 | 24 | 3 | Oregon State |
The Bears have some anchor players along the defensive line with Pro Bowl players Peppers and Melton. Stephen Paea started coming into his own at DT as did DE Corey Wooton while Shea McClellin showed flashes of potential as a situational pass rusher. With Izzy Idonije still unsigned, the Bears could use a versatile DE or DT that could move around and play in the rotation. I’d be surprised if the Bears didn’t take a flyer on a defensive lineman at some point in the draft.
Linebackers
| 50 | Anderson, James | LB | 6-2 | 235 | 29 | 8 | Virginia Tech |
| 55 | Briggs, Lance | LB | 6-1 | 244 | 32 | 11 | Arizona |
| 52 | Costanzo, Blake | LB | 6-1 | 235 | 29 | 7 | Lafayette |
| 57 | DeCicco, Dom | LB | 6-4 | 230 | 24 | 2 | Pittsburgh |
| 53 | Franklin, Jerry | LB | 6-1 | 245 | 25 | 1 | Arkansas |
| 97 | Thomas, J.T. | LB | 6-1 | 236 | 24 | 3 | West Virginia |
| 59 | Trahan, Patrick | LB | 6-2 | 236 | 26 | 2 | Mississippi |
| 58 | Williams, D.J. | LB | 6-1 | 242 | 30 | 10 | Miami (Fla.) |
| 96 | Wilson, Lawrence | LB | 6-1 | 229 | 25 | 1 | Connecticut |
Brian Urlacher and Nick Roach are gone, so this is another position in for an overhaul. While the Bears added James Anderson and DJ Williams, they need to get younger at the position. They have some flexibility and the pressure is off to have to take a LB in round 1, but if Alec Ogletree is around in Round 1, that will make Phil Emery think about pulling the trigger. I’ve seen a mock draft where Arthur Brown falls to the Bears in Round 2. That would be a no-brainer.
Cornerback
| 38 | Bowman, Zack | CB | 6-1 | 193 | 28 | 6 | Nebraska |
| 31 | Frey, Isaiah | CB | 6-0 | 190 | 23 | 1 | Nevada |
| 24 | Hayden, Kelvin | CB | 6-0 | 195 | 29 | 9 | Illinois |
| 26 | Jennings, Tim | CB | 5-8 | 185 | 29 | 8 | Georgia |
| 39 | Lewis, LeQuan | CB | 5-11 | 190 | 24 | 1 | Arizona State |
| 27 | McManis, Sherrick | CB | 6-1 | 193 | 25 | 4 | Northwestern |
| 33 | Tillman, Charles | CB | 6-2 | 198 | 32 | 11 | Louisiana-Lafayette |
January 25, 2013; Ko Olina, HI, USA; Make-A-Wish foundation child Aidan O
You wouldn’t think that a position that boasts a pair of starting Pro Bowlers needs to be addressed in the draft but with Charles Tillman getting up their in age and Tim Jennings a one-hit wonder until proven otherwise, the Bears might be able to select a corner and start grooming Tillman’s replacement. In today’s pass-happy NFL, you can never have too many cornerbacks.
Safety
| 47 | Conte, Chris | S | 6-2 | 203 | 24 | 3 | California |
| 35 | Hardin, Brandon | S | 6-3 | 217 | 23 | 2 | Oregon State |
| 46 | Nelson, Tom | S | 5-11 | 200 | 26 | 3 | Illinois State |
| 44 | Quarles, Cyhl | S | 6-3 | 212 | 24 | 1 | Wake Forest |
| 20 | Steltz, Craig | S | 6-1 | 210 | 26 | 6 | LSU |
| 37 | Walters, Anthony | S | 6-1 | 207 | 24 | 3 | Delaware |
| 21 | Wright, Major | S | 5-11 | 204 | 24 | 4 | Florida |
| 36 | Zbikowski, Tom | S | 5-11 | 200 | 27 | 6 | Notre Dame |
I think the run of safeties being selected by the Bears in 8 consecutive drafts might be coming to an end. Chris Conte and Major Wright were solid last season and the addition of Tom Zbikowski and redshirt freshman Bradon Hardin to the mix will make this group pretty well stacked.
I’m not going to bother much with the specialists because they’re pretty well set, but I’ll touch on Devin Hester as a special teamer. Just to note, I think the Bears would be foolish not to consider using Hester as a sweetener in a trade. Maybe you find someone who will have an interest and take a chance on him.
What do you think? Which position has the most holes that need to be addressed? Which group is solid and would be surprising if the Bears selected? Let’s hear your comments.