The NFL draft is always a great weekend for so many people, but it is also a tough weekend for others. When players get drafted a job is on the line for them, and that means potentially taking the job from somebody else. This is no different for the Chicago Bears.
So, who ended up the big losers from the 2023 NFL Draft?
5. Velus Jones did not have a good weekend with Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears obviously did not trust Velus Jones, and he barely got on the field as a rookie. However, now it is hard to say that he will be anything other than a special teamer in the NFL. That was likely going to be the scenario, but the draft helped lock that in.
The reality is that if the Chicago Bears thought he could do anything on offense they would not have gone so hard to upgrade the room. The trade from D.J Moore, and the drafting Tyler Scott push Jones down. Tyler Scott is one year in experience behind Jones, but he is 4.5 years younger and now has more time on his deal. Scott will get the chances that Jones struggled with last season.
Heck, the Chicago Bears even signed Equanimeous St. Brown, and Dante Petts just in case with Jones. Both of them got on the field over Jones last year, and both of them bring their own value to special teams. Jones still brings enough to the table that he should beat out one of those guys, but thinking about the room as a whole, that is the number six wideout.
The number six wideout will not play on offense very much, if at all. So, entering year two Jones is now an injury away from even being in the mix to get on the field for a snaps, let alone start. It is hard to see any path where Velus Jones breaks out this year, and that will make the following two years seem impossible to expect more.