There are plenty of talented players left on the board for Ryan Pace and the Chicago Bears tonight. However, Pace should avoid these five names.
The Chicago Bears have two second-round picks tonight. Currently they find themselves with pick No. 43 and pick No. 50. The hope here is that Ryan Pace moves back from one of them, maintains two second-round picks, but also gains a late third or fourth-round pick.
We have been talking a great deal lately about players the Chicago Bears must pick with either of the two second round picks. Here’s the thing, we should be just as concerned about Ryan Pace selecting the wrong players. Do we want another Adam Shaheen situation?
After going through names that others have mentioned and just the top-100 players lists from multiple analysts, I have decided the Chicago Bears will make a big mistake if they draft one of these five players with either pick No. 43 or pick No. 50. This does not mean if they trade back and use a later pick, that the selection is still bad. It will all have to do with value.
1. Cole Kmet, TE – Notre Dame
Yep, I said it here and now. I think Cole Kmet is the best tight end in this draft. The problem is, this draft is very watered down with mediocre talent. If the Bears were able to land Kmet in the third or fourth round, I am on board. Taking him in the early to mid second round. No thank you. In fact, the Bears should not take any tight ends in the second round.
2. Van Jefferson, WR – Florida
I like Van Jefferson too. He is my WR13 in my tiered big board rankings. The problem is, I just do not like him early. He comes in as number 75 overall in my rankings. Jefferson is a third-round talent at best, and honestly I think the drop off from him to a guy like Devin Duvernay is not that big. This is why if the Chicago Bears do not get Denzel Mims, K.J. Hamler or Laviska Shenault, Jr. at pick No. 43 or Chase Claypool, Michael Pittman or Donovan Peoples-Jones at No. 50, then they should abandon the position until Day 3.
3. Jake Fromm, QB – Georgia
I am actually a fan of Jake Fromm. I think Fromm will have a productive career. His upside may not be as electric, but he has what I believe is a solid floor for a starting quarterback in the NFL. That said, I do not want to see Fromm being called at the podium for the Chicago Bears in the second round. The reason is that I would only take Jalen Hurts in the second round and that is because of his upside. Fromm in the late third or fourth round is where I would like to see him taken.
4. Jonathan Taylor, RB – Wisconsin
This one is literally just a gut feeling. I know many people will disagree with me, but I just do not trust running backs that play well in Wisconsin. Jonathan Taylor is the RB2 behind D’Andre Swift on my big board. I like him. I just do not want the Bears taking a chance on him with an early pick here. To me, using a guy like Taylor to entice another team to trade up is the better value here. I would prefer they look to draft a running back later or pick up a free agent later in the offseason.
5. Malik Harrison, LB – Ohio State
This is another one where I like the player. I just do not want the Chicago Bears drafting an inside linebacker with one of these two picks. Malik Harrison will be a good player in this league, but I do not want them spending this high of a pick on a position that has two solidified starters in Roquan Smith and Danny Treavathan. Could they get hurt and Harrison step in? Sure. I would just prefer they fill any ILB holes on Day 3 or in the second wave of free agency.
(So no ILB here no matter the name)
This wraps it up. We are less than an hour away. Hopefully, none of these names find their way into a Chicago Bears uniform by the end of the night unless it involves some type of trade back. Let’s have fun tonight and hopefully we all go to bed happy with the decisions Ryan Pace makes.