Bears NFL Draft: How Chicago Crushed Its Picks
The Chicago Bears had themselves a draft but are still third in the odds to win the NFC North at +275. Now, it is a little easier to have a nice draft with two top top-10 picks.
Yet, plenty of teams have screwed up this type of situation in the past, so let’s give the Bears their deserved flowers. The reason they landed the No. 9 selection is a result of passing on Bryce Young in 2023 and trading the No. 1 overall pick to Carolian, a decision that is still early but looks to have paid off.
Now, we can finally put to bed the debates on Caleb Williams’ nail polish color and see how the quarterback performs on the field. The good news is the Bears have been aggressive in getting Williams plenty of weapons. Chicago already landed Keenan Allen and D’Andre Swift.
The Bears have put together a fantastic trio of WRs for Caleb Williams.
Where do their triplets–DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, and Rome Odunze–rank in the NFL?
Both @BrettKollmann and I were shocked by how high we had em…
🎧: https://t.co/25po4Tj9rF
📺: https://t.co/NcuncdnQ7k pic.twitter.com/1tVYltJDEE— Mina Kimes (@minakimes) April 30, 2024
The Bears followed these moves up by adding former Washington star receiver Rome Odunze at No. 9. Bears general manager Ryan Poles indicated the team considered trading up to ensure they landed Odunze.
“Rome was at the top of our list,” Poles said on “The Pat McAfee Show,” per NBC Sports Chicago. “We have our draft board separated by different colors and there’s certain guys you don’t pass up. Rome’s one of them.
“… As it started to unfold, (Bears assistant GM Ian Cunningham) had to hold me back to not trade up and do something crazy to get him.”
Let’s explore how the Bears nailed the draft.
Bears Landed Steal in Kansas Pass Rusher Austin Booker
Chicago may have landed a major steal with the selection of Kansas standout pass rusher Austin Booker in the fifth round. NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein gave Booker a third-round grade and compared the edge rusher to Las Vegas Raiders star Maxx Crosby.
Austin Booker is a STEAL 👀🔥
pic.twitter.com/jj2XNkSTu9— Bearsszn (@bearssznn) April 27, 2024
“Truly unique prospect combining tremendous upside with an extremely limited sample size,” Zierlein detailed in his pre-draft profile on Booker. “… The diversity of his rush approach is unheard of for a player with so little playing time.
“… He chases quarterbacks and running backs with agility and burst but can be inconsistent dealing with a downhill running game. His reps against talented Texas left tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. could be the springboard to push this gifted edge defender with monster traits up the draft board toward an exciting NFL career.”
What Can Bears Fans Expect From Caleb Williams?
We can talk about how the Bears filled out their draft, but how we look back on the results will depend on Williams’ career trajectory. Williams’ best season at USC came in 2022 when the quarterback threw for 4,537 yards, 42 touchdowns and five interceptions while completing 66.6% of his passes.
.@ProtoHologram makes its mark on the #NFLDraft 🏈
During the @ChicagoBears Draft party Caleb Williams & Rome Odunze amazed fans as lifelike holograms, courtesy of Proto’s Epic display unit.@ByEthanJoyce has more on Proto’s ground breaking technology:https://t.co/Nln78wvRRF pic.twitter.com/mF7ResowUZ
— Sports Business Journal (@SBJ) May 2, 2024
Assuming Williams checks out as most expect, the Bears crushed the draft by understanding the assignment. The Athletic’s Dane Brugler rated Chicago as having the best draft of any team.
“Obviously, teams with multiple early-round picks have a decided advantage for this exercise over those with fewer selections,” Brugler wrote. “But the Bears aren’t No. 1 merely because they had two top-10 picks.
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“They’re here because of what they did with those picks — and I went back and forth on my “favorite” between Williams and wide receiver Rome Odunze. The answer, though, has to be the quarterback who can be a franchise-changing player for Chicago. I am also a fan of third-round OT Kiran Amegadjie, who has the talent to be Chicago’s left tackle of the future.”
If Williams eventually helps turn Chicago into an NFC contender in the NFL odds, Bears fans are going to be okay with whatever color nail polish their QB1 wears.
Questions Of The Day
How did the Bears get the No. 9 pick to draft Rome Odunze?
This pick was part of a trade the Bears made with the Panthers ahead of the 2023 NFL draft.
How did the Chicago Bears do in the 2024 NFL Draft?
The Bears are being widely praised for their draft results with some analysts labeling Chicago among the top performers.
