After selecting Kyler Gordon 39th overall and Jaquan Brisker 48th overall, the Chicago Bears make a splash at by selecting Velus Jones 71st overall in the 2022 NFL Draft.
The Chicago Bears select Velus Jones Jr. 71st overall in the 2022 NFL Draft
While Velus Jones was a bit of a surprise for the Bears to draft given the fact that he’ll be turning 25 on May 11th, this player fits the Ryan Poles and Matt Eberflus team fit — at least from what’s been said by the two.
If there’s one thing Velus Jones brings to the table, it’s speed. And coming from Kansas City, maybe Ryan Poles was trying to recreate Tyreek Hill the best he could.
Jones player is a fast, physical, and not-that-small receiver considering his speed and twitch. For Poles and Eberflus, that seems like a decent start to their career in Chicago after three picks.
Along with those attributes he brings to the table, Velus Jones was a rather impactful player at Tennessee.
Velus Jones Jr: faster than you
— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) November 6, 2021
🏁 @VelusJr pic.twitter.com/Z7qHLuaejE
After three years at USC and two at Tennessee, Velus Jones Jr. had a nice end to his college career by catching 62 passes for 807 yards, and seven touchdowns. To get this player in the third round is a good grab, however, it feels like the Bears could’ve gotten him in a later round. With so many players that didn’t end up going to the Chicago Bears, it’s hard to criticize the team for getting a different player to fit a need at receiver.
At the end of the day, while Velus Jones might not be a Day 1 impact starter, they can still impact the team positively, especially in special teams.
Picks lower in the draft like this one are tougher to analyze at the moment of the pick. A lot of the cold takes exposed happen to be players that weren’t top talents going into the draft, yet developed into a key player for the team.
That could either come from good coaching, good personal development, or some combination of the two. There’s a lot that goes into evaluating players, and in this instance, I think it’s safe to say the Bears got a good player in Velus Jones Jr. at the 71st overall selection in the 2022 NFL Draft.