More Mac Mocks for Bears
The Bears get the opportunity on Tuesday to watch a player work out at a pro day who NFL Draft Bible sees as their selection in the 2021 NFL Draft.
FanNation's draft website conducted its first mock draft held after the monumental first-round trades made on Friday and the player they chose for the Bears at No. 20 is quarterback Mac Jones.
Jones, who was also chosen for the Bears in BearDigest Mock Draft 4.0, has already worked out at a pro day for Alabama.
The Crimson Tide has a second pro day set up and Jones is not resting on his previous product. He will work out again even though there were no real complaints about what he showed the first time.
He wasn't too pleased with the throwing aspect of it, though.
"I really don't think it was as good as I probably wanted it to be," Mac told NFL Network after that workout. "I'll probably be pissed about it for 20 minutes, but I'll be good after that."
Mac's arm strength and athleticism are his burdens as he tries to show scouts he is a first-round pick and worthy of consideration with the "big four" among quarterbacks near the top of Round 1.
Despite this supposed lack of athleticism, he ran 40 times at the 4.79 to 4.85 range in the first pro day. A 4.79 is actually better than Patrick Mahomes' combine 40 time (4.8). Even if slower clockings were used, he's at least on par with Baker Mayfield (4.81) and Sam Darnold (4.86).
What Mac has consistently shown in his time as Crimson Tide quarterback is an ability to make quick, accurate decisions and deliver it accurately.
The other big question about Mac is whether he can throw when he doesn't have an ability to step into throws. At Alabama, he usually had sufficient time to pass in a clean pocket, and in the NFL this is uncommon for even the best quarterbacks behind the best offensive lines.
The first Alabama pro day did not include his usual receivers. He was throwing to Slade Bolden and Xavier Williams rather than DeVonta Smith, Jaylen Waddle or John Metchie. There was hope he might have a better crew of receivers to throw to at his second workout.
The pick made by NFL Draft Bible came under some questionable mock draft circumstances.
All of the top tackles had been taken, including Virginia Tech's Christian Darrisaw at No. 13 and Texas' Sam Cosmi to Washington at No. 19 just before the Bears selected.
Some top cornerbacks were gone, as well. Northwestern's Greg Newsome was off the board by then, although NFL Draft Bible had the Bears passing on Virginia Tech cornerback Caleb Farley and Syracuse's Ifeatu Melifonwu.
Although it's well known the Bears are also looking for a slot receiver, both Florida's Kadarius Toney and Purdue's Rondale Moore were passed over by the Bears to take Jones.
A month ago Chris Simms of NBC Sports predicted Jones would go in the top 10. Whether this has been impacted by the trades made Friday is unclear, but NFL Draft Bible thinks Matt Nagy would love him.
"Although the Bears have added Andy Dalton to compete with Nick Foles for the starting job in 2020, it is no secret that these two passers are not the future of the franchise. Jones, off an extraordinary season at Alabama, has starter potential," NFL Draft Bible wrote. "He is a likely first-round pick come April."
Some speculation since the 49ers-Dolphins trade Friday says San Francisco likes Jones and will take him third overall. Considering the athleticism shown by other passers, this seems a stretch.
Mock drafts have been conducted by others since the big trades of Friday. Another interesting one is from Chad Reuter of NFL.com.
Reuter had the Bears trading up with the New York Giants and selecting Jones at No. 11.
"GM Ryan Pace and head coach Matt Nagy bring in Jones to learn behind consummate pro Andy Dalton in 2021," Reuter wrote. "Jones' athleticism is average, though he performed better than expected at his pro day. His pocket feel and accuracy are something the Bears lacked the past few seasons."
They might need to trade up almost this far to get him as it's possible New England would want a quarterback at No. 15, and Bill Belichick has strong ties to Alabama coach Nick Saban.
To make the deal, Reuter projected the Bears must give up a third-round pick and also a 2022 first-round pick in addition to the 20th pick of this draft.
It's a pricey move and the Bears have four definite draft needs: quarterback, wide receiver, tackle and cornerback. It would appear a few of those will not be met by a pick above Round 5 then, because they would have only a second-round pick and then drop down to Round 5 before participating again.
SEE BEAR DIGEST MOCK DRAFT 4.0
NFL DRAFT BIBLE'S LATEST MOCK DRAFT, POST 49ERS/DOLPHINS TRADE
NFL.COM HAS A TRADE FOR BEARS TO LAND THEIR QB
Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven
