Ryan Poles mismanaged the Chicago Bears' roster with these two colossal mistakes

Mistake No. 2: The Bears should not have drafted Zacch Pickens

I am sure most Bears fans point to the Chase Claypool trade as being a colossal mistake. It wasn't a great trade, but the process made sense at the time. However, I am more concerned with the moves made by Ryan Poles in the draft. Why? Because building through the draft is the most important part of building a sustainable, successful franchise.

Now, I will applaud Poles for his decision to double down at the defensive line position in 2023. First, the team selected Gervon Dexter after passing on Jalen Carter for Darnell Wright. All signs point to this being a great decision. With the first pick in the third round, Poles grabs Zacch Pickens. The problem is not the process, it is the player. Pickens did little to make an impact in his rookie season last year. He did not flash enough in preseason and a groin injury has kept him off the field through the first seven weeks of the season. Not great.

Seeing your third-round picks struggle to see the field in back-to-back seasons is not a good look, whether the struggle is based on injury or lack of production. Although the 2024 season has kept Pickens on the sideline due to an injury, that was not the case during his rookie season in 2023. Instead, he struggled to see the field due to his inability to make high-impact plays.

Last year, Pickens saw 25% of the defensive snaps. In those 262 snaps, he only finished with 18 tackles (9 solos). From a pass-rush perspective, Pickens only had 8 pressures and one sack. He looked a little better to start the season in 2024 but has not stood out like Gervon Dexter. In his seven snaps this year, he has 2 pressures, which in the short term looks fantastic. However, he just does not jump off the tape. Hopefully, Pickens can prove my opinion wrong, but it seems like a misstep by Ryan Poles in the draft again.

If the Chicago Bears were to have looked to the opposite side of the ball instead, a few names I would have liked to see Poles select over Pickens are Nick Saldiveri, Blake Freeland, or Ricky Stromberg. Prospects I liked more than Pickens going into the 2023 NFL Draft who could have been selected by the Bears in the third round include Byron Young, Tank Dell, Zach Harrison, Josh Downs, and YaYa Diaby.

I did not even have a third-round grade on Pickens. Not sure what Poles and his staff saw that made them think he was worthy of the 64th overall pick. I had late second or third-round grades on the rest of the names I listed.

Now, I will say that these two missteps seem relatively minimal. No general manager in the NFL is perfect. These two draft selections, unfortunately, stand out right now as the team continues to struggle with the interior of the offensive line, and the defensive line has looked strong without Zacch Pickens on the field. I would have loved to see some of the other prospects I mentioned competing on this roster. Overall though, I feel good about the direction Poles has taken the Bears.