Who are the top five draft picks of the Ryan Pace era?
Ryan Pace was hired in January of 2015, becoming the 6th GM the franchise has ever had. Pace has had his ups and downs. When he was first hired I loved the move, but then Pace decided to hire John Fox and we all know how that turned out.
However, after the signing of Fox, especially in the 2018 offseason, it doesn’t look like Pace made a bad decision. His plan for the Bears has become clear heading into the 2018-19 season. Until this past year free agency is where Ryan Pace has made the most questionable decisions with his time on the Bears.
Even with that in mind, Ryan Pace has been the king of the draft! Of course, every team has their misses but when Pace does miss on a pick, he seems to find a diamond in the rough during a later round of that same draft. This time next year I expect Roquan Smith to be on this list and I can’t wait to watch him this upcoming season.
5: Adrian Amos
I really thought the Bears were going to make a move for another safety this offseason and maybe move Amos into a hybrid safety/linebacker role. Especially with all the hard hits he produces running up to fill a gap, along with being a sure tackler in the process.
Amos is phenomenal against the run and at being an inbox safety. His coverage ability needs some improvement which we did seem to see some of towards the end of the year. Having Eddie Jackson back there with him helps, since Jackson picks up some of the slack from Amos in coverage.
Pro Football Focus graded Adrian Amos as the second best safety in the league last year. Now adding another year of experience under his belt, along with more continuity in the same defensive system with the same DC and numerous returning starters we should see an even better Amos this year.