Bears Draft Grade

[fleet]

I wouldn't sleep on Jeffery's speed. He was clocked with a 4.49 40 at his pro day when he was 212 lbs which he's reportedly maintained.

I've read that he's a long strider, which might give people the perception that he's slow. I viewed a ton of pictures of him BEHIND the DB, so that tells me that he's not slow.

from the youtube clips I've seen, he has not just good with his hands but great. I don't mean catching the ball, I mean the way he uses his hands (and big body) to gain space Vs DBs when the ball is in the air. Very sneaky smooth. Hey if they don't throw the flag...........

hes not slow, hes just not really explosive off the line. And he dances around too much imo. He needs to run through some of these little guys instead of trying to go around them. Assuming he keeps the weight off, this stuff is coachable.

[BullHeaded]

Initially I was only excited about the Alshon Jeffrey pick because I like the idea of at least building one unit that has a distinction... that is excellent and has some sort of defining element to it. The additions of Marshall and now Jeffrey distinguishes this group as a big, physical group which will make big catches and require multiple players to drag down after the catch.

That hasn't changed. But the McClellan pick has been growing on me. I actually like that we didn't pick him up after a run on DEs. Our guys who had all of the data on all of the available DEs felt he was a better football player than Mercilus, Chandler Jones, Nick Perry, etc.

This morning I also heard Greg Gabriel on the Mully and Hanley Show talk about these picks. He seemed pretty supportive of the top three picks. With Shea McClellan he said he not only had a motor and instincts that distinguished him from the others, but was exceptional with using his hands. Blockers will have a very hard time pinning him down and staying in front of him. Regarding Hardin, he said what the medical staff wants to see to determin whether the shoulder is a lingering concern is whether he has played with it again (which he did) and his bench press numbers afterward to see if the muscular architecture is back (he had a great bench press at the combine). He this this was a solid pick.

The OT thing... I wouldn't reach for one in a draft. In fact... I believe holes should be filled in FA, and in the draft you just have to find the best players available (except qb if you have a franchise one already). You need to find guys who are "should be starters" in the draft. If you don't think Reiff will be an upgrade over Webb (and they may have had their reservations about that), but you think McClellan was going to be a stud pass rusher... you did the right thing. And I think drafting an OT in the late rounds just to draft one doesn't help the roster unless that player had more upside than any other available.

I give this draft a B. I'm optimistic that 2 of the top 4 picks will be legit starters and improve the team. I just don't know much about any of the other players selected. The offseason as a whole I will say A-.

[BullHeaded]

One more thing... I really wanted us to take Ladarius Green as TE and was frustrated to see him selected before we took Rodriguez who I thought was a bit small for the position. But it sounded like this was a scheme pick and there is a specific plan under Tice for him. So there may be more than meets the eye.

[SportsWorld]

I gave them a C. I can't tell you much after the 3rd round but I think they swung and missed on the McClellin and Hardin picks. The Alshon Jeffery pick will hopefully prove to be a steal though.

[fleet]

But my UDFA winners so far are the Bears and Jets
Bears took my Mr. Irrelevant pick Ronnie Cameron, plus Alvester Alexander, James Brown, and Adrien Cole. Every one of those guys is no worse than 50/50 to make the team.

[Sinistar6]

Shea draft pick sure looks a lot better after you hear the patriots and the packers liked him.

I really like this draft, I think all the picks have upside. Grade B.

[Chewie]

But my UDFA winners so far are the Bears and Jets
Bears took my Mr. Irrelevant pick Ronnie Cameron, plus Alvester Alexander, James Brown, and Adrien Cole. Every one of those guys is no worse than 50/50 to make the team.

Well that's intriguing news. We always seem to dig up good UDFA guys.

[1rage]

C for Championship!

in all seriousness though, I think it is silly to grade the draft when it won't be until 2-3 years from now how everyone pans out. Heck some of the UDFA even become solid football players then. What I do like is that Emery seems to get it where Angelo didn't. I like the different philosophy in this draft, and it is clear that Emery has a vision on what he wants; he got several potential playmakers with high floors imo, while also plugging in needs. LT was the only real need besides DE and WR (since Knox is in the PUP) going into the draft, and it was clear that this draft was going to be low on Day 1 LT starters other than Matt Kalil). Webb is the weakest link on our line, but I think with another year, an OTA, and No Mike Martz, he will be average this year. I'd rather get a DE than a guard or project LT.

I was only iffy about the Safety and TE picks. but after hearing Emery's reasonings, it makes sense. We need somebody to match up with the receiving TEs of today, and also someone who can force people into their base packages. Rodriguez was listed as a FB so that made me WTF at first since Clutts was a pretty good FB, but let's face it, he nor spaeth were not as versatile in the receiving game even though their blocking were superb.

[BIGGIEsmalls 23]

Shea draft pick sure looks a lot better after you hear the patriots and the packers liked him.

I really like this draft, I think all the picks have upside. Grade B.

Both the Packers & Patriots were picking at the end of round 1, not #19.

To be fair to Emery, the Patriots did trade up to #21 after the Bears picked Shea. I guess it's possible that we caught wind of that potential trade beforehand, which made us pull the trigger at #19. We may never know if that Patriots trade was planned or if it was a reaction to our pick of Shea.

[lcomitor]

I give the Bears a B+. I think they've been having a successful offseason as a whole.

[BIGGIEsmalls 23]

I give the Bears a B+. I think they've been having a successful offseason as a whole.

I loved the offseason (Brandon Marshall makes it a solid A) so far, but I hope that I'm proven wrong about their draft picks.