Alright, rather than just keep telling you who the Chicago Bears selected in the 2023 NFL Draft -- you can find that out easily on ESPN or other major affiliates. Instead, let's dive into what we have seen to this point. Ryan Poles looks to be fleecing people left and right with the trades he has made this offseason, however, he might not be as good of a poker player as we all thought.
That's right, the Chicago Bears are tipping their hand and everyone and their brother should be able to identify who the Bears might target with their picks on Day 3. To this point, the Bears have selected four players.
- Darnell Wright, OT (Pick No. 10)
- Gervon Dexter, DT (Pick No. 53)
- Tyrique Stevenson, CB (Pick No. 56)
- Zacch Pickens, DT (Pick No. 64)
The interesting thing about these four players is that three of them were on Luke Getsy's Senior Bowl roster -- Darnell Wright, Tyrique Stevenson and Zacch Pickens. Does this mean we should expect to see more guys taken on Day 3 (or tonight if Ryan Poles trades back up) who were on the American Senior Bowl roster?
Personally, I preferred Broderick Jones to Darnell Wright, but Wright is the more pro-ready offensive tackle between the two. He also projects to be an elite pass-blocker and that is more important than a run-blocking tackle when your quarterback is sacked 58 times.
Gervon Dexter has major upside. He was a 5-star recruit and actually ranked higher than Jalen Carter. Could he be molded into a more productive pass disruptor despite a lack of production at Florida? He had 20 pressures this past season, but only six total over the last two years. I'm shocked to see Adetomiwa Adebawore fall this far, but clearly, teams didn't fall for his off-field measurables. Dexter is the only one of the four not to play in the Senior Bowl.
They then traded up to 56 to select Tyrique Stevenson was shocking to me. I don't mind the pick for a corner, but there were guys I liked more. He has great size though at 6'0" and 200 lbs. His hips are not the loosest and he might struggle to mirror receivers in the NFL. He is strictly an outside corner, which means that Kyler Gordon is likely pigeonholed into the nickel spot. Giving up pick 136 to move up for Stevenson when there were guys like Clark Phillips and D.J. Turner on the board is a bit confusing. Again, the Senior Bowl is playing a huge part in selections by Poles and staff.
Zacch Pickens is the one that confuses me the most though. They clearly must have liked what they saw from him at the Senior Bowl. Some fans think they will play one at the 3-tech and one at the 1-tech, but when I look at these two, they are both better suited to play the 3-tech. Are the Chicago Bears double-dipping at the position because it is that important? I thought the pick should be an outside edge rusher, but maybe the team will look to add one in free agency once the draft is over?
What do you think? Are you happy with how the draft has played out through the Bears' first four picks? Keep an eye out for more players to be drafted who played for the American team at the Senior Bowl.