The Bears 2020 Draft Class: Improving the team.... But in a Different Way Than They Should Have?

My number one rule of NFL draft week:

Never judge a draft class until it is completed.

It's a good thing my girlfriend dragged me out of our apartment to go for a walk on a glorious spring day, otherwise my twitter fingers may have gone off on Ryan Pace prematurely.

I share my feelings on each individual pick and player below, but one constant though throughout this draft that I kept having was:

"But what about this guy? Why'd you pass on him?"

This was getting me heated on multiple occasions because I thought the Bears were missing out on players who could fill certain needs. Admittedly, that thought process clouded my judgement of the picks in the moment. Time to digest those picks, coupled with seeing how the whole class came together put me in a better place. I still have my concerns (which I'll mention), but I feel more comfortable now.

Here's my pick-by-pick analysis:

Round 2; Pick 11: TE Cole Kmet, Notre Dame

St. Viator (Arlington Heights, IL) alumnus Cole Kmet. The former two sport Lion and Fighting Irish TE and Pitcher should provide a great boost for a struggling Bears offense

Ok, first things first:

This kid went to the same high school I did (I graduated in '10, him in '17) and we played for the same baseball coach, who I am still very close with to this day. So honestly, I was secretly hoping the Bears would draft him.

That being said, when he was announced, I'll admit I didn't love it at first. It wasn't the player, it wasn't that there wasn't a need or it was bad value (no way was he making it to 50, let alone further than that):

It was Denzel Mims.

Ever since the Senior Bowl, I've had a serious man crush on Mims. That only intensified with an impressive combine that shot him into first round pick territory. I honestly didn't think he would fall to 43, but somehow he did, and I thought the Bears should pounce on this big time playmaker.

However, the Bears went the TE route instead. And of course, in typical Bears twitter and National Sports Media fashion, both were very quick to point out that the Bears now had 10 TEs on the roster.

What both of those entities failed to acknowledge though, is that of the 9 other TEs on the roster, only 2 or 3 are actually worthy of roster consideration. Additionally, this pick coupled with the Jimmy Graham signing puzzled some (like myself), but the more thought that went into it, it's not that shocking.

For one, Nagy's offense is predicated on strong TE play, specifically out of two TE sets (one "Y" in-line TE and one "U" "move" TE). Kmet fits perfect at a "Y" position, while Graham is best suited for the "U".

Kmet is also only 21 years old and split his time between football and baseball (he was the team's closer) at Notre Dame, so he is still a bit raw in some aspects and needs time to develop. Part of this pick is the long term upside. Regardless of the how the team's QB situation pans out this year, whoever is at QB in 2021 and beyond should have a big and talented TE to throw to.

PICK GRADE: B+

Round 2; Pick 18: CB Jaylon Johnson, Utah

Utah CB Jaylon Johnson is game ready. His football instincts and aggressive mindset is a perfect fit alongside all pros Eddie Jackson and Kyle Fuller.

While the Kmet pick didn't necessarily bother me, the Jaylon Johnson pick initially got me HEATED.

I couldn't believe the Bears would pass on Mims TWICE. Not only that, but one of my favorite OTs in the draft (Josh Jones) and safeties (Jeremy Chinn) were both also still available, so it was perplexing to me that the Bears took a player at a position that I didn't see as a high need.

However, Johnson's talent is undeniable. He's arguably a top 20 talent in this draft and is game ready because of his instincts and intelligence. He lack top end speed and his hips can be a little tight, but he bullies WRs and has a nose for the football. The Bears love physical CBs, and Johnson fits that Charles Tillman/Kyle Fuller mold. There are definite concerns over his shoulder injury history, however, the Bears were obviously comfortable with his medicals and could have landed one of the steals of the draft.

PICK GRADE: B+

Round 5; Pick 10: Edge Trevis Gipson, Tulsa

Tulsa's Trevis Gipson has the raw athletic ability and tenacity to be a difference maker at the next level. You can never have too many good pass rushers in the NFL.

So round 5 came around and I'm all ready for the Bears to pick at 18... then I get a call from my father that they've traded up. I start getting skeptical, but I'm thinking "Ok, maybe they're trading up to get an OL or WR they like and don't want to lose."

Then they draft an edge rusher.

Didn't they just sign Robert Quinn? What the hell do we need an edge rusher for? We need developmental OL, playmaking WRs, and a starting S. Not only that, but we traded up for him?

But then the Bears didn't trade up. No, instead they traded a 2021 4th rounder. And then I read up on Gipson:

Kid can play.

Prototypical size, length, and speed combined with good power both on the rush and against the run. His pure talent and athleticism is very impressive, but he's still raw. Scouts say he still needs work on his punch and his counter rush abilities, but hey, I think working with two all-pro edge rushers may help the kid out don't you think?

As for the 4th round pick the Bears traded away, I was reading somewhere that the Bears actually had a 4th round grade on Gipson anyways. Additionally, NFL.com's rating system gave him prospect rating of 6.22, narrowly missing a designation of "Will be a starter within first two seasons".

Pace has a knack for this drafting defenders on the 3rd day thing.

PICK GRADE: A-
 
Round 5; Pick 18: CB Kindle Vildor, Georgia Southern

Far from a perfect pick, Georgia Southern CB Kindle Vildor's coverage skills give him promise to crack the lineup as a slot corner. At the very least, the Bears may have another special teams ace on their hands.

At this point I'm watching the draft, I'm real heated.

ANOTHER corner? How many more are we going to roster? How many more picks are we going to have until we get someone at a position of need?

Yet again in this draft, time started to set me straight. What I thought was just a depth/special teams signing actually looks more and more like a legitimate threat to start at nickel corner very soon. Vildor is a little undersized (5'10" 191), but is a great athlete with good length. He doesn't possess the requisite top speed or physicality to play on the outside, but his coverage skills are solid. Now that the draft has been completed, I've actually started to see some rumors that Buster Skrine may be cut ($4M savings), so I think that speaks to Vildor's abilities.

PICK GRADE: B
 
Round 5; Pick 28: WR Darnell Mooney, Tulane

A touchdown waiting to happen, Tulane's Darnell Mooney is the lightining in a bottle that the Bears lacked at WR in 2019.

The Bears trade up and FINALLY take the WR I've been waiting for.

But wait, that's not Donovan Peoples-Jones (who I also really wanted because of his upside). In fact, I've never came across this kid in my pre-draft research.

Oh, but this kid can FLY (4.38 40 at the combine). The thing I had been asking for all draft is a big time playmaker offensively. Well this kid is it. He can blow the top off the defense (which no other Bears WR can do) and he can take short passes and turn them into TDs (which also, no Bears WR can do). He's touted as a slot WR, but he can also play outside (which is where I think the Bears could really use him).

I liked the potential of DPJ and am a little disappointed the passed on a possible starter at strong safety in Antoine Brooks Jr., however, I like what I see out of Mooney. He's unlikely to be an every down WR because of his thin frame and lack of detailed route running, but his ability to be lighting in a bottle is exactly what the doctor ordered for the Bears anemic offense.

PICK GRADE: B+

Round 7; Pick 12: OT Arlington Hambright, Colorado

Colorado OT Arlington Hambright has a lot of developing left to do, but he has all the right tools in place to make it work.

There's the OL project I was waiting for. This one looks like a deep scouting dive by the Bears. I thought they'd take a shot on Trey Adams (who took a massive tumble after a bad combine) or Terence Steele (an intriguing developmental prospect out of Texas Tech), but I'm assuming something on tape stood out to new OL coach Juan Castillo.

Hambright lacks the length and size to stay at tackle, so he'll likely be moved inside to guard. He moves very well (4.97 40 at his pro day) and has decent body strength, so it seems like there's something for the Bears to play with here. He's got a lot of ironing out and developing to do and will likely end up on the practice squad in year one, but could be someone to keep an eye out for the future.

PICK GRADE: B

Round 7; Pick 13: OG Lachavious Simmons, Tennessee State

Playing at a small school, Tennessee State OG Lachavious Simmons dominated his competition. He needs a lot of seasoning, but with the right coaching, this mauler could have a promising future.

One. Mean. SOB.

At 6'5" 315 with excellent length and versatility, Simmons provides a lot of upside. He possess a lot of power at the point of attack and open holes nicely in the run game. Played at a small school, but took care of his competition with ease, which is a big plus. This looks like another developmental project to let Juan Castillo get his hands on to mold.

I like it.

PICK GRADE: B+

Overall Impressions

Ryan Pace did a good job of managing the few picks he did have, even snagging two additional 5th round pick at what I think are very low costs. Despite not liking most of the picks on the surface initially, I think in the end of things the Bears came out alright. I worry about passing on talented players like Denzel Mims, Jeremy Chinn, and Josh Jones, but it seems like they identified their guys and went out and got them. Adding in Kmet should stabilize the offense immediately alongside Jimmy Graham, and adding Mooney should add an extra bit of "umph" into an offense that ranked near the bottom in "explosive plays" in 2019. Meanwhile, Jaylon Johnson should be the odds on favorite to be the starting CB opposite of Kyle Fuller in 2020 and Trevis Gipson adds some necessary depth/insurance behind Robert Quinn and Khalil Mack.

I wasn't expecting the Bears to land a starting OL in this draft, but I was hoping they'd swing a little harder for a developmental prospect than just two 7th round picks. That being said, the two kids they drafted do intrigue me.

OVERALL DRAFT GRADE: B+

My Ideal Bears 2020 Draft Class

First off I want to say that I hope everyone is staying safe during this COVID-19 pandemic. These are definitely interesting and worrying times and all of us are being greatly affected.

Fortunately, in a world devoid of sporting news, we still have the NFL off-season. And man, was the start of free agency a whirlwind. High profile names were heading left and right in blockbuster trades (if someone can explain to me what the Texans were thinking I'd be very appreciative) and free agents started choosing their new homes.

Now that the dust from free agency has settled, I have finally put together my ideal draft class by doing a mock draft on thedraftnetwork.com. Unlike many others, I do not like coming up with mock drafts before free agency has occurred. It's hard enough to be accurate with mock drafts thanks to unexpected trades and selections without adding in the fact that a team's needs can drastically change throughout the off-season.

For the Bears, drafting a QB in the second round was a pretty hot topic all off-season, but I think that should be quashed after trading for Nick Foles. Outside of Germain Ifedi's "prove it" contract, the Bears didn't do much to address their problems up front, making OL a serious need entering the 2020 draft. Additionally, there's still a glaring hole at the starting safety spot opposite of Eddie Jackson. Some other areas I and others would like to see the Bears focus on in this draft is getting more playmakers on the offensive side of the ball (TE/WR) along with some depth/building blocks on the defensive side of the ball (CB/ILB).

With that in mind, here is my ideal Bears 2020 draft class:

Pick 43 (2nd): Austin Jackson, OT Southern California

Without a doubt, offensive line is one of the Bears biggest needs entering this draft. A lot of talk has surrounded filling the hole at the RG position, but I believe that Germain Ifedi should perform nicely inside at that role. That leaves the tackle positions. Charles Leno was just awful last season. Don't let the metrics fool you because tape never lies. He got beat down too many times to count and it affected the whole offense. I still have some hope he can return to form, but he needs a fire lit under his ass, and some competition may just do that. I've also never been a fan of Bobby Massie. Too many times I see him get beat on a pass rush or fail to get movement in the run game. These two are exactly why targeting an OT early should be at the top of the Bears list.

If the Bears can land Jackson at 43, I'll be ecstatic. There are a few scouts around the league that have pegged him as a first round talent. He's been steadily rising up draft boards throughout the pre-draft process, culminating with a strong combine performance. Jackson is athletic and plays with good leverage, giving him the ability to handle speed rushers off the edge. Combined with his excellent size (6'5" 322) and strength (27 bench press reps), Jackson has all  the makings of a franchise left tackle and a second round steal.

Pick 50 (2nd): Jeremy Chinn, S Southern Illinois

While the Bears did a good job of focusing on some of their needs this off-season, they still haven't found anyone to play safety opposite of their all-pro Eddie Jackson. The team did resign Devin Bush, whom Chuck Pagano is very high on, and may still sign a low-cost veteran to compete for the job, but a long term solution is still up in the air. Regardless of who ends up starting week 1 of next season, it needs to be someone who is more of an "in-the-box" safety so that Eddie Jackson can shift back to his ball-hawking role that he is so good at.

Enter Jeremy Chinn. At 6'3" 221, Chinn possess elite size for an "in-the-box" safety and has blazing 4.45 speed. He's an uber aggressive defender who attacks both blockers and ball carriers. He's also excellent at ripping the ball out and creating turnovers. While he still requires work on his coverage skills, he possesses the necessary athleticism to recover. He should make a fine strong safety at the next level, even earning comparisons to Harrison Smith from NFL.com's Lance Zierlein

Pick 163 (5th): Harrison Bryant, TE Florida Atlantic

How many TEs do the Bears have on the roster right now? 10? 15? Whatever it is, it is a lot and it got even bigger with Jimmy Graham being added in free agency.

So why am I drafting another one?

Because Bryant could be a stud.

Remember when the Bears drafted Adam Shaheen over George Kittle? Of course you do. Bears fans will never let Ryan Pace live that one down. Well, Harrison Bryant might just be George Kittle 2.0. He possesses strong athleticism (4.74 speed) and knows how to make plays down the field. The best part about Bryant is his versatility. He has the ability to split out wide and do work against corners, so he fits perfectly in the Bears "move TE" role. Despite being a "receiving TE" first, Bryant holds his own in the blocking department as well, only increasing his value.

Do I expect Harrison Bryant to be an impact player in year one? Probably not. But do I think passing on him could be another George Kittle-sized mistake? I absolutely do.

Pick 196 (6th): Reggie Robinson II, CB Tulsa

We've passed the point in the draft where you're likely to find immediate starters, so at this point I like to find upside. My favorite kind of players to look for late in drafts are the "prototypes". Guys who fit a specific build of height/weight/speed who may lack technical skills or be very raw. Reggie Robinson II fits that mold. He's got outside corner size (6'1" 205) and incredible length to go along with the speed (4.44) to handle outside receiving threats. He was also a big time performer in his time at Tulsa.

His coverage skills are going to need work as his hips are tight and he has trouble mirroring receivers, however, in the 6th round, there's a lot to love about this kid's potential

Pick 200 (6th): Darryl Williams, IOL Mississippi State

In my opinion, the Bears don't have a true center on their current roster. Cody Whitehair has too many issues with his long snapping to be a real solution there and James Daniels has struggled mightily in his time there. So it would be ideal if the Bears were to try and target someone who could possibly start at the center position.

Williams was a captain and a three year starter at Mississippi State. Though he lacks the ideal athleticism to play in the NFL, he's an absolute grinder and he holds his own. Scouts don't love his explosiveness off the line and into defenders and they are worried he could get exposed at the next level, but he had a strong performance at the East/West shrine game, highlighting his ability to play against top talent. Williams may not be a long term option at center, but his mentality and grit make him worth a flier in the late rounds

Pick 226 (7th): Cole McDonald, QB Hawai'i

If the Bears want to take a developmental guy at QB who they can stash on the practice squad for a year, look no further than McDonald. He is a strong athlete (4.58 speed) and possess prototypical NFL QB size at 6'3" 215. He hails out of the pass happy Hawai'i offense, so there's concerns about him just being a "scheme QB". However, he's been praised for his ability to read defenses and move through his progressions.

Scouts are not in love with his throwing motion and he's had a great deal of trouble hitting the deep ball in his career. This has lead to concerns over his ability to make NFL throws. However, his athletic ability and his pocket presence are something to build on and make him an appealing last round pick.

Pick 233 (7th): John Hightower, WR Boise State

I fought the urge to jump at WRs at other points in this draft (specifically in the second round), but there was no chance I was getting out of here without taking at least one. While the Bears WR core isn't too bad, there currently is no one on the roster that is a consistent deep threat. So I went looking for only guys who fit the "deep threat" profile.

That's how I landed on the lean (6'1" 189) WR out of Boise State. He's got speed to burn (4.43) and is a definite big play threat through the air, after the catch, and on the ground as well. In addition to his speed, Hightower cuts well and can lose his defenders easily. That being said, his overall route running still needs refining and he has trouble getting off of the press.

The biggest issue with Hightower is his hands. He catches in the body far too often and he has some difficulty tracking the deep ball and making plays in traffic. While these are concerning, if he can iron out some of these issues, Hightower has the big play ability to be a real difference maker.


And there is my ideal Bears 2020 draft class. If the Bears were to come out of the draft later this April looking a little something like this, I would be ecstatic about the upcoming season. In the meantime, everyone stay safe and practice your social distancing. Together, we'll all get through this.