10 most valuable offseason additions by Chicago Bears

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Oct 15, 2021; San Jose, California, USA; San Jose State Spartans defensive lineman Cade Hall (92) is blocked by San Diego State Aztecs offensive lineman Zachary Thomas (76) during the third quarter at CEFCU Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports /

9. Zach Thomas, Chicago Bears Draft Pick

Zach Thomas was drafted after Braxton Jones, but may end up with a bigger role, at least during his rookie season. Thomas went to a slightly bigger school at San Diego State. That is not quite SEC, but he faced enough competition that the jump will not be quite Southern Utah to the NFL.

Beyond that, while Thomas was a tackle at SDSU, that is because the team needed him to be there as their best tackle. He should be a guard, and there is a case to be made that if he played guard in college he would have gone higher.

When you look at his profile, he is very similar to Ryan Bates, a tackle from Penn State who moved to guard and caught the Chicago Bears’ eye this offseason. Bates wound up staying with the Buffalo Bills, but the Bears may be thinking that they found a similar version in Zach Thomas.

The big reason Thomas is higher than Braxton Jones is that his path to starting is easier. The starting right guard spot is wide open, with a name like Dakota Dozier as the placeholder starter. Thomas could wind up being their day one right guard, making him a steal on day three.

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