The Chicago Bears should hope that Cesar Ruiz from Michigan slides to them in round 2
We all know that the Chicago Bears are welcoming competition at right guard to boost their offensive line. If he falls to pick 43, Cesar Ruiz from Michigan would be a great fit.
Ruiz was a highly regarded recruit coming out of high school as the top center in the country. During his true freshman year, he started the final three games for Michigan at right guard. In the following two years, he started at center for the Maize and Blue and was a leader for a heavy Michigan rush attack.
Most projections have Ruiz going anywhere from the late first to second round. The Chicago Bears should ensure that 43 is his floor.
Measurables
Ruiz is above average in almost all areas. In his mockdraftable below, he looks short, but that includes offensive tackles. He is going to play center, or guard, where lineman are much shorter. With that in mind, at 6’3″ with over 33″ arms, he has plenty of size for the position.
Strengths
Starting as a true freshman and coming out early, Ruiz has a great combination of youth and experience. He will enter the draft at age 20, but has over 2,100 snaps at the college ranks. Ruiz is great at moving in space, and getting his hands on defenders. When he does get his hands on you, you will not get out of his grasp.
He is position and scheme versatile with light feet, a quick first step and strong recognition that gives him an advantage on his opponents.
Weakness
Ruiz is a sound overall prospect but does not have a true overall strength, but rather a strong sum of his total parts. As he enters the NFL at a young age, with a developing body, he could struggle with an initial push from bigger and stronger nose tackles.
Pro Comparisons
When looking at a list of the closest physical and athletic comparisons to Cesar Ruiz, a variety of centers and guards who had great NFL careers come up. Maurkice Pouncey, Alex Mack, Roberto Garza, J.C. Tretter, and Mitch Morse have a similar athletic profile.
That sounds like high praise, but Pro Football Focus compares Ruiz to Pouncey. NFL.com compared him to an even more familiar name in James Daniels. They wrote.
"Athletic and tenacious with the combination of skills and technique to fit into a variety of blocking schemes on the next level. Ruiz wins early with initial quickness and fast hands into first contact. He works to convert early advantages into wins. He’s consistent in securing down-blocks and has the athletic traits to become a second-level factor. He’ll give some ground to power rushers and needs help against wide-bodies, but the tape checks out. Ruiz has early starting potential and should develop into a good pro with guard/center flexibility."
The comparison makes sense in some regards. Both got on the field early into their college careers at guard but transitioned to center. Both played in run-heavy pro offenses in the Big 10, and both are very quick on their feet and great at moving in space. Daniels also entered the draft at age 20.
The knock-on Daniels has always been his playing strength and that is what held up his rookie season, and cause some issues in his move back to guard. While it does not mean everything, Daniels had 21 bench reps at the combine while Ruiz had 28.
Daniels struggled with some of the communication and recognition that came with the move to center. Ruiz may be better in this area or could start at right guard. Would drafting Ruiz and starting him at right guard, be an instant fix?
Fit with Chicago Bears
The position versatility, age, and athleticism are going to intrigue Ryan Pace. He checks all the boxes that James Daniels did and arguably more. Whether he starts at center and ends the Cody Whitehair snapping fiascos, or if he slides into right guard as a plug and play, he can fill a need for the short and long term.
If the Bears pass on Ruiz at pick 43, it would be fascinating to see what area they go for. Ruiz falling that far may be unlikely, but Daniels was an expected first-round pick and fell to 39.
Still, similarly to Daniels, when it comes to Cesar Ruiz, 43 should be looked at as his floor.