Bears Haven't Ignored Running Backs at Combine
If you listen to Bears general manager Ryan Pace, running back rates a low priority for this draft.
Logic says something different, even if they did just draft starter David Montgomery last year and have Tarik Cohen, Ryan Nall and sometimes even Cordarrelle Patterson at the position.
At least one player at the NFL combine indicated the Bears haven't forgotten the position completely.
"We like the group we have right now," Pace said earlier this week at the combine. "I think Tarik, when he's rolling, kind of gives us the scatback. We call it a Joker back. And then David, just his ability to break tackles and run with power, and then as we talked about, maybe sprinkling Cordarrelle Patterson some and his explosiveness. And Ryan Nall. We like Ryan Nall a lot.
"So I think we like our running backs. Doesn't mean we can't continue to add to the room. But I think right now we have a lot of different flavors there that all feed off each other."
Take Montgomery away from those flavors and it's not such a tasty situation. This is a back the Bears talked about using in a rotation but he ended up with 242 carries.
"Well, I think like most players the more touches you get, and you saw some of that last year, the more comfortable they get," coach Matt Nagy said. "It's like a shooter. The more they shoot, the more rhythm they get into. He's a very talented kid. I love his hunger. We talked last year about how much he learned each week in practice about what this long season was about. He can do a lot of different things. We know what his strengths are and what his weaknesses are.
"Could we have helped him last year by getting him the ball more? Yes, absolutely. It's a part of the identity."
That's fine, but if Montgomery goes down and he's a 250-carry-a-year guy, who's left to do it?
More uses for Patterson wouldn't hurt, considering he had the ball in his hands only 28 times last season and the Bears are counting about $5.75 million against this year's cap for him. Still, he's been a returner and a hybrid style of back, not an every-down ball carrier.
His ideal situation would be carrying it out of the deep I as a downhill runner like a kick returner does, but he'd have to practice this and it's unlikely the Bears are donating much time to this concept.
There would be no candidate to be the back on every down unless Nall could be considered this, and he has almost no NFL experience beyond special teams and practice squad. Nall did run a faster 40 time than Montgomery. He turned in a 4.58 to Montgomery's 4.63. But those times would put both backs closer to fullback speed than breakaway threats.
At this combine, the Bears at least have spoken with one back who is regarded as having draft potential. His style of play would fit the offense. That's Florida State's Cam Akers.
It would seem unlikely Akers would be a player of interest with so many other needs, considering he's regarded in the top 10 among backs by most draft analysts. However, running backs have declined in importance in drafts over the past few years and teams can never be sure when a top talent might fall into their laps later in the draft.
Akers has been compared often with former Florida State backs Dalvin Cook and Warrick Dunn. He averaged 4.9 yards a carry over three seasons with the Seminoles, with 586 carries for 2,875 yards. He also showed he can be in the passing game with 53 receptions over his final two seasons.
"I just think I'm a complete back from catching to blocking to running," Akers told reportes at the combine.
He likes to pattern his style after Ezekiel Elliott and Alvin Kamara, and draws inspiration for his play from the battle his mother, Angela Neal, had with breast cancer.
"Seeing my mom go through breast cancer--she's a survivor now--but her going through breast cancer taught me there's not much to complain about in life, seeing her fight and knowing it was for her children," Akers said. "She said that all the time. It made me a fighter."
Akers has estimated he'll run a 4.4 in the 40 on Friday, and speed isn't one of the Bears' strengths at running back if you consider Montgomery ran a 4.6 at the combine.
"A lot of teams have a question about my speed. I'll be clearing that up Friday," Akers said, laughing.
Some of the predraft scouting reports on Akers have suggested he isn't at his best blocking, but he's as defiant about this as he is about his 40 time.
"You can't play in this league if you can't block," Akers said. "And I learned that early in college. I have a good understanding of that and I know that's something I've got to be sharp on."
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