Chicago Bears: A top-ranked quarterback falls in three-round mock draft

The Chicago Bears wait and land Mac Jones with the 20th-overall pick

Before you say, there’s no way that Mac Jones falls to 20th overall, that might not be entirely true. Many believe that five quarterbacks would go before the 10th pick in the draft, and there’s no way that the Patriots don’t take a quarterback at 15 should one fall. Although this might be true, it would be truly historic.

More often, NFL Draft analysts overvalue quarterbacks or the need of a team at the position. We see this in mock drafts every year. Many times analysts will have more quarterbacks in the first round than actually get drafted. In this case, I am not even looking for fewer quarterbacks to be drafted. Instead, I am just wanting one of the top-five draft prospects to fall. Any of the five is worth the risk at pick 20.

Mac Jones might be the safest quarterback outside of Trevor Lawrence in the top-five. The thing is, he lacks the upside many people see in the other three options. Personally, I think Justin Fields is relatively safe too, but I do fear his floor could be lower than Jones’. Both Trey Lance and Zach Wilson are considered more boom/bust type players. Wilson has seen his draft stock rise very quickly in 2020, even faster and higher than Mac Jones’ stock.

The biggest knock on Mac Jones is his arm strength. He cannot sling the football like Lawrence or Wilson, but that should not stop the Chicago Bears from taking him should he fall to 20th overall. What Jones lacks in arm strength, he makes up for it with his football mind. Jones is almost the opposite of Mitch Trubisky. He’s not even close to being as athletic, but he is a decision-making field general.

Jones has great accuracy and decision-making skills that set him apart from some of the other quarterbacks ahead of him in the prospect rankings. He does a great job taking what the defense gives him. If his primary option is not available, he is willing to dump it off to an underneath route. What might be most important though is his ability to put the ball in spots that allow his receivers to not only catch it but make a move in stride.

In fact, if Jones had the arm of Lawrence or Wilson, he’d probably be giving them a run for their money as the top quarterback in the draft. Oh, and for those who are concerned about how he was only able to achieve this success because of the talent around him, I call nonsense. Jones proved himself during the Senior Bowl practices. It is a shame he did not get to play in the game, but he looked far and above better than the other quarterbacks invited.

For a more in-depth analysis of Mac Jones, check out this article here by one of our other contributors. Oh, and for fun, I ran the simulation over, and over again on multiple draft simulator sites. The results were very similar and Jones was available enough times that I feel comfortable saying there is a probability that he or one of the other top five quarterbacks falls to No. 20. Jones will sit behind Dalton in 2021, but could push to start should Dalton falter.