The Chicago Bears new tight end group looks to improve a very weak position
Tight Ends: Jimmy Graham, Cole Kmet, Demetrius Harris, J.P. Holtz, Eric Saubert
Grade: C+
The tight end room has left a lot of fans with divisive feelings. On one hand, they have added two new pieces which should be an improvement on what they had last year. On the other hand, how those players were acquired can leave some people a little unhappy.
Let’s start with Holtz and Saubert. Both of these players saw very limited playing time last season in what was already a bad position group. I expect much of the same this year, not too often you will see fourth and fifth string tight ends getting action.
Demetrius Harris is a veteran coming into his sixth NFL season and first with the Bears. Harris is a very solid depth piece and I look for him to fit in nicely as TE3. While he probably won’t wow you, he as shown to be a quality player when called upon. Look for Harris to possibly be featured a little more than he has had in career up to this point.
Though he is starting at number two on the depth chart, I’m expecting Cole Kmet to be the Bears best TE in 2020. Some fans were left unhappy with the second-round pick this past draft. Some thought the Bears were prioritizing team need overvalue.
I personally had no problem with the team selecting the Illinois native with their first pick. Kmet was thought of as the best player in the draft at his position, by most accounts. I will never fault a team with looking to improve a glaring need, and that’s exactly what I think the Bears did here.
Closing this out with the offseason signing of Jimmy Graham. The Bears signed the former packer to a two year almost 16 million dollar deal, with nine million of that guaranteed. One of the more head-scratching decisions of the offseason.
Graham is coming off of two down years from his time in GB, that was plagued with drops and little separation. Since leaving the Saints years ago Jimmy has been a shell of his former self. The Packers thought he still had something to give as a red-zone threat, and I’m guessing the Bears feel the same way.