More Bears Linemen with Nasty Streaks
The trading frenzy Bears GM Ryan Poles went on Saturday on the draft's final day let him seek out potential help on the offensive line, among other positions.
In essence, they chose to throw numbers at the problem by trading down four times and drafting four offensive linemen with some of the eight picks they wound up with on the draft's final day.
With the 186th pick in the sixth round they drafted Zach Thomas, a tackle who has also played guard for San Diego State and was well known to them. Earlier, with the 168th pick acquired by trading down, they took Southern Utah tackle/guard Braxton Jones. Then they chose Illinois center Doug Kramer, a Hinsdale Central grad at the 28th selection of Round 6 and then Southern University Ja'Tyre Carter with their first pick of Round 7.
The Bears allowed more sacks last year (58) than any team and lost both left tackle Jason Peters and right tackle Germain Ifedi, as well as right guard James Daniels. So there opportunities will be there for both players to battle for starting spots, although both tackles Larry Borom and Teven Jenkins will be in the mix out the outside as well.
Jones was All-Big Sky last year for the Thunderbirds at 6-foot-7 and 310-pounds, and has arms more than 35 inches in length. His physique is more that of a left tackle.
The Bears contacted his agent and gave him a late workout the week of the draft in order to get a closer look at him.
"I think they just needed to see me actually move and be able to move in space, my athleticism, maybe they weren't totally sold on it yet," Jones said. "For me to come out there on slight short notice and just do my thing, I think they saw that in me."
Jones comes off as being a nice guy but he said it's better not to assume anything on the field.
"That's the thing about me is I'm very personable off the field but once I get on the field, I try to finish every play," Jones said. "I'm not the guy that's just gonna be mean for no reason, or what you call it, be a dick for no reason. I'm not that type of guy, but I'm gonna finish and I'm going to do my job to the highest level.
"I'm not going to be out there just trying to be the nice guy and kind of get pushed around."
Southern Utah doesn't play the toughest schedule but he caught the Bears' eyes at the Senior Bowl.
"That Senior Bowl was huge for him," scout David Williams said. "Because you never really, some of those small-school prospects I've scouted over the years, they never really know until they get to the East-West Shrine, the NFLPA, especially the Senior Bowl, the Combine.
"So for him to exist in that and not just exist but compete and be one of the better linemen there, I thought that was a really good sign for his future."
The Bears had talked in the scouting process to Cameron Thomas, the pass rusher from San Diego State. Zach is his 6-5, 300-pound older brother and although they didn't get Cameron, who went to the Cardinals, they were happy to come away with his brother as another offensive line possibility.
Thomas played in a run-based offense.
"I think just being brought up in a system that allowed me to get out in zone schemes and all kinds of different things has been amazing," Thomas said. "I purposely chose San Diego State because of that run scheme."
Thomas is another player in the mold of the "nasty" style coach Matt Eberflus was looking for in blockers.
"I hang my hat on just being a player who plays through the whistle on every play," Thomas said. "I love putting guys on their backs. I think I'm going to fit into the system really well."
He also was known for not being penalized, as he had just three flags in his time at the school.
"I mean, it was always a goal of mine to go in and not have any penalties," Thomas said. "I still remember the first one I got this year. I was pretty upset about it. But yeah, it was always a goal of mine to not have any penalties throughout the year.
"I'm a guy that penalizes myself for getting a penalty after."
Kramer is 6-2, 300 and Carter 6-3, 311.
As a Chicagoan, Kramer naturally graviated to the Bears as a youth and called Brian Urlacher and Devin Hester his favorite players. Then he began playing center.
"And then right when I began playing offensive line Olin Kreutz was the guy that I always looked at and just loved the way that he played the game," Kramer said.
At Illinois, he was competing against Josh Kreutz, Olin Kreutz's son.
"Obviously growing up at that position in Chicago that was the guy you were going to look at because you knew he was the toughest guy on the field and he was going to get after people," Kramer said. "So I think every young kid in Chicago was trying to emulate what he did on the field and I definitely tried to carry that toughness with me my entire career knowing that I would be smaller than some of the guys that I was going to go up against and battling with out on the field."
Carter is a player who could project to guard or tackle and being from Southern, the Bears needed to how he would hold up against top competition at the Senior Bowl.
"You wanna see 'em and right off the bat, I believe it was an Oklahoma guy he lined up against, so I'm kinda back there standing by the goalpost going, 'Here we go. Baptism by fire,' " Bears scout Breck Ackley said. "And he gave a little ground, kinda sat on it, then when he came out of the rep he almost bought back a little bit. It was almost like he, himself, realized, 'I can hang.' After that, every other rep, he battled and held his own."
