Chicago Bears fans might get very upset this upcoming draft. The more prospects I dig into for this upcoming draft, the more I find players whose draft value is greater than the team needs. Most Chicago Bears fans want to draft offensive line early to protect Justin Fields. Others want the Bears to draft receivers to give Fields the most weapons humanly possible to have a Joe Burrow-like season.
Ryan Poles shared how he values the trenches more than any other group position on the field. It seems that Chicago Bear fans are hung onto that specific comment. While I believe that Poles values the offensive line greatly, he also shared how it is important to find value in the draft.
This upcoming draft could greatly upset Chicago Bears fans because the value for each selection could be more significant than each need. Drafting value was what Ryan Pace did well in the later rounds and during the 2018 NFL Draft. However, he missed his chance to draft by value most of the time.
According to most mock draft simulators, the prospect value is most significant between picks 25 and 45. You might be thinking, that’s great because the Chicago Bears pick at 39. Here is the issue depending on what happens in free agency. The best value players available during the 39th overall selection for the Chicago Bears aren’t positions of great need like receiver, cornerback, or offensive line. Only one or two players tend to be available.
Those players tend to be cornerback Daxton Hill, guard Zion Johnson, and receiver George Pickens. Most of the players that shouldn’t be passed on due to their value include:
- Linebacker, Leo Chenal – Wisconsin
- Defensive line, Travis Jones – Connecticut
- Edge, Arnold Ebiketie – Penn State
- Safety, Jalen Pitre – Baylor
Those four players are worthy of the 39th overall selection pre-combine. After the combine finishes, there might be different thoughts on them as players. It’s not just the talent that each of these guys produces on the field. Some players make me believe that Matt Eberflus won’t let Ryan Poles let them go by in the draft if they are on the board at the 39th overall pick.
These are Matt Eberflus HITS players. Before we go, I want to share that we should count out what Ryan Poles and Matt Eberflus have said to the national media. If they have specific things they look for in prospects, fans might want to check out players that fit that mold.