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With the draft less than a month away Beargoggleson will be breaking down a wide range of options for the Chicago Bears in the 2015 draft. We’ll start with the potential first round options, profile some possible day 2 prospects, and finish up with some under the radar day 3 players who I think could be good fits for the Bears new schemes on both sides of the ball. As always, if you have any complaints, advice, or questions please let us know in the comments or on Twitter.
College Career:
Former 5-star recruit who lived up to his potential at Alabama. Collins was a special teams standout as a freshman, then make a significant impact when entering the starting lineup as a sophomore finishing 2nd on the team with 70 tackles, 2 forced fumbles, and 2 interceptions. In 2014 Collins was dominant as a junior, leading the team with 103 tackles, intercepting 3 passes, and being a team captain.
Strengths:
Physical safety who excels as an in-the-box run stopper and is a big time hitter against both the run and receivers over the middle. Collins closes on ball carriers like a missile and will improve the run defense from day 1 wherever he ends up. He has text-book tackling form and usually takes the proper angle to the ball, so he’s basically the opposite of the Bears recent safeties. His coverage skills were considered somewhat of a weakness before this season, but Collins improved significantly this year and even played some snaps as a 1-deep free safety for the Tide. Collins should have no problem matching up with TEs and RBs out of the backfield.
Weaknesses:
He probably isn’t quick enough to cover slot WRs in man. He’s solid in zone coverage as long as the play is in front of him, but has a tendency to let receivers get behind him which has led to him getting burned deep a few times (Auburn, Ole Miss) this year. Besides that there isn’t much not to like.
Bears Fit:
The Bears have needed help at safety the last two seasons, but for some reason former GM Phil Emery never made it a priority. New GM Ryan Pace at least started the process of overhauling the position with the signing of former Giants free safety Antrell Rolle. He fits Fangio’s preference for safeties that can play both free and strong, allowing the defense to disguise it’s formation before the snap. This is a very week draft class for safeties and Collins is one of the few that fit Fangio’s versatile safety model. Collins would be a perfect fit at strong safety next to Rolle, giving the Bears two safeties that can play either role, but #7 may be too high for Collins. If the Bears end up trading down to the mid-to-late first round, Collins makes a lot of sense.
Draft Projection: 1st round
Highlights: