Should Chicago Bears draft Dorian Thompson-Robinson to backup Justin Fields?

The Chicago Bears may end up keeping Trevor Siemian because of his salary, but that should not prevent them from being in the market for a backup. If they go to the draft, it would be easy to carry Siemian as a third-string and mentor for two young quarterbacks. Could that be Dorian Thompson-Robinson, from UCLA?

Chicago Bears Draft Profile: Dorian Thompson-Robinson

Strengths:

Dorian Thompson-Robinson makes sense for a specific reason, he is a mobile quarterback who can get out and move. Below you can see his NFL combine profile, which highlights how fast he is compared to your normal quarterback.

Beyond that, you have a player who started the past four seasons at UCLA and played for five years with the Bruins. He has 1,359 passing attempts in college and comes in with plenty of experience. For the role of backup, his experience and mobility immediately give him a floor that could get you in and out of a game or two with competitive play.

He progressed as a passer every season and plays with a chip on his shoulder that many will want in the locker room. If he knows his role, this is the type of player you want.

Weaknesses:

His accuracy can come and go, but he also has questionable decision-making. Beyond that, when he starts to push the ball down the field the ball starts to spray on him and he is much more of a game manager as a passer. When he starts to get too aggressive you start to see why he is not getting more NFL draft hype.

NFL Comparison for Dorian Thompson-Robinson

It is a pretty easy comparison to make, as Dorian Thompson-Robinson has a profile similar to Tyler Huntley. Huntley was a Pac-12 quarterback with a lot of experience, and some even bigger wins than DTR. Still, while both of them are mobile, and have been able to manage games in college at times, both are shorter, and neither has the arm to consistently win in the NFL.

Still, the Baltimore Ravens have turned Tyler Huntley into a trusted backup and they have had to turn to him at times. That is not an awful outcome for someone like DTR.

How does Dorian Thompson-Robinson fit with the Chicago Bears?

Dorian Thompson-Robinson makes a lot of sense for the Chicago Bears. As noted, because he will not only be on a rookie salary, he also will be a late-round pick, his salary will be extremely low. It would allow him to assume the third-string job and have the team keep Trevor Siemian.

As DTR grows, he could eventually take over the backup snaps, but with Siemian on a reasonable deal they are not forced into throwing him in there. Still, if Justin Fields does get injured the Chicago Bears have to find a way to run a more similar offense than they did last season. The change from Fields to Siemian and back to Fields is too much, if they can go to DTR, they can run the same offense no matter who plays quarterback.

If Ryan Poles winds up trading back a few times and has a few extra day-three picks, they should be all over Dorian Thompson-Robinson.