Bears ~ Round One Roulette
By John Vassar
Dec 5, 2013; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Louisville Cardinals safety Calvin Pryor (25) prior to the game against the Louisville Cardinals at Nippert Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
Its finally here, draft day or at least round one. I am not going to post a mock draft, there are a plethora of them and fans don’t need one more. What I intend to do today and through the weekend is to bring you, each round pick ~ three ways kind of like spinning the wheel in roulette. I will first give you what the majority of the mocks say, what Emery might do and then my contrarion, outside the box pick. Today will be round one, then tomorrow morning will post round two and then after that selection round three. That way I can deduce the picks as a GM would by seeing who is gone and adjust for any trades.
Round One, pick 14.
A. Pundits/Draftniks and Beat Reporters:
If Donald is gone as most assume, the prevailing choice is Calvin Pryor, S Louisville. There are some that hold to Clinton-Dix and Justin Gilbert. I have no real problem with Pryor, the bigger issue is how does the Bears organization look at the safety position. You could argue that, Ryan Mundy is more of a strong safety so that would point in the direction of the Clinton-Dix crowd. The other issue with Pryor, is his longevity. He is a big hitter, and several personnel people fear that he will get injured or his body will wear out before its time. Seems minor on the surface, but could be an issue. Dix on the other hand would be more of that FS typer player that would compliment Mundy. The problem with HaHa is medical concerns and the whole Alabama DB bust mystique. If Emery follows conventional wisdom and drafts either Pryor or Dix then we know which way Mundy will go.
B. Emery will draft:
Again, thinking Donald and let’s say Gilbert are gone. He takes Kyle Fuller, CB Virginia Tech. He fits everything Emery is looking for, decent size, good speed and consistent player. Three year starter that is probably the most complete player, tackles well and has good zone coverage skills. The Bears D doesn’t play a lot of press coverage so that makes Fuller a prime candidate. The other possibility is that he can play Safety. Emery alluded to looking at corners to move to safety. Could be a smokescreen or he is saying the S class doesn’t wow him. Also, if the Bears traded down to the Jets or 49’ers, Fuller would probably be still around. The argument against Fuller is playing time and would he have impact? The Bears starting corners (including nickel) are all over 30, two went down with injuries last season and Tillman is about done. So Fuller would rotate in, see him in a dime package and if one goes down he steps in and never looks back. If he goes to safety, thinking along the lines of a FS. Either way he gives the Bears flexibility.
C. Surprise Pick:
Looking at the Emery six, and ignoring who is or not available, he takes HIS highest rated player: Kony Ealy, DE Missouri. He fits Emery’s ideal defensive lineman. He is big at 6′ 4″ and is as fast as Donald and some believe a better pass rusher. He also plays the run well. He is a great athlete and has huge upside, those appeal to Emery. He is a shade on the light side at 275 but as Greg Cosell mentioned, add ten pounds and you have an excellent three technique tackle. He provides the Bears with versatility and could play immediately in a rotation with Houston at three technique. Also, can give the Bears various looks with pass rush and blitzes. Many will regard him a reach at 14, but in Emery’s mind he is the perfect fit for the Bears versatile defensive line.
D. Don’t look now here it comes pick:
If the draft unravels and there is a run on players Emery likes, not thinking there will be. Be prepared for the likes of Taylor Lewan, T Michigan or Eric Ebron, TE, North Carolina dropping into his lap. Remote at best. Another one is Mosley, LB Alabama. Would be a great fit but medical issues might prevent him from being on that list of six. I would label these disaster picks or if they traded down and all their six were gone.
It will be interesting to see what happens, much of it out of Emery’s hands and who he chooses will certainly tell us where we go tomorrow in rounds two and three.