3 Wide receivers the Chicago Bears must watch for 2023 NFL Draft
By Joseph Herff
Chicago Bears 2023 NFL Draft Target: Quentin Johnston, TCU
If the Bears are looking for a bigger, more imposing force at wide receiver, Quentin Johnston is their guy. Johnston towers over most opposing cornerbacks (6′ 4″) and can also back that with incredible athletic ability.
Much like Kayshon Boutte, Johnston doesn’t have the stats to back up his play. He too was hampered by injuries and bad quarterback play. He finished his sophomore campaign with 33 catches for 634 yards (19.2 average) and six touchdowns. He did account for 22% of the receiving output as they didn’t throw for many yards.
First-round TCU wide receivers definitely lead a sour taste in the mouth as Josh Doctson and Jalen Reagor (yuck) are the two most recent. Johnston is a similar tale to Reagor too that he truly is unrefined. Johnston has the incredible athletic ability to pair with his elite size and general quickness that a team can easily refine into an elite number one target down the line. The only question is can a team develop him, or can Johnston take a big step in 2022?
Fortunately for the Bears, they have a great wide receiver coaching staff. They additionally already have the main target in Darnell Mooney. If the Bears were to pair Mooney with Johnston and allow him to develop, he could develop into the main option down the road. This does reek of Kevin White 2.0 though as he’s a big, athletic freak who needs work.
Next. 4 Chicago Bears most likely to be in first round of cuts. dark
Regardless, this is a deep wide receiver draft once again with some solid names like Jordan Addison, Josh Downs, Jermaine Burton, and Parker Washington. The Bears should most definitely take the guy they believe can develop with Fields for the future. Pair a young future star with an already budding star in Mooney, and the Bears are set at that position group for the next decade.