Tackle Supply Could Run Deep in Round 1
Bears GM Ryan Poles last week said he was open to moving down in Round 1 and had suggested this at Halas Hall a week earlier.
On Tuesday, Bears coach Matt Eberflus told reporters at the NFL owners meetings that they considered it possible left tackle Braxton Jones could move to right tackle if the circumstances were correct, circumstances being they drafted someone who they felt could be better blocking the left side.
The possibility of another trade down probably depends greatly on whether one of the four quarterbacks fall and if they deem the supply of tackles or pass rushers worthy in the middle portion of Round 1, depending on who the trading partner is.
If it happens, there's no reason to think Jones couldn't play right tackle while a drafted tackle would handle the left side, although it's true Jones never played it in the NFL or college.
However, he has already proven himself to be an excellent run blocker at tackle. Pro Football Focus rated him 11th in the league as a run blocker.
Traditionally right tackles are the better run-blocking tackles because they're lining up to the strong side of the formation and left tackles have to be better pass blockers as they're protecting the QB's blind side.
All of this is based on a right-handed quarterback like Justin Fields. So Jones would be playing to his strong suit being at the strong run-blocking position and merely would need to adjust his footwork to coming out of his stance on the other side of the line.
Either of the top two tackles analyzed in the past by BearDigest could fit in as a left tackle because they played there in college. That would be Ohio State's Paris Johnson Jr. and Northwestern's Peter Skoronski.
It's possible they'd even be right tackles, although their experience level at this position is comparable to Jones' right tackle experience in college. Johnson did play it a little one season but other than that they were left tackles.
Broderick Jones of Georgia is the third tackle many mock drafts have mentioned in the middle of Round 1, but his stock seems to have dropped a bit according to Mel Kiper Jr. In his lastest mock Kiper had Jones well below the rest in his latest mock and had him fall all the way to No. 31.
If the Bears were to trade down in Round 1 with Tennessee or Washington or any number of the teams seeking quarterback help if one should fall to No. 9, the entire Chicago draft situation could change.
They might need to look past the big three at tackle to the next group, or even into other rounds. Top-end tackle talent seems abundant in this draft's first two rounds.
In fact, one recent Pro Football Focus mock had six tackles going in the first 19 picks, but Kiper's last mock for ESPN had only five going in Round 1.
Here's what they would be looking at besides Johnson, Skoronski and Broderick Jones.
Anton Harrison Oklahoma
The 6-foot-4, 315-pounder ran the second-fastest time among offensive linemen at the combine at 4.98 seconds, .01 behind Jones. He's built along the lines of Ohio State's Johnson and athletic like him but wasn't as effective as a blocker until midway through last season. He had a better year blocking in 2021 according to PFF. Harrison, who allowed four sacks in his career, did play 53 snaps at right tackle in 2022, the first time he moved off of left tackle in his career.
Dawand Jones, Ohio State
Not a fit for the Bears blocking scheme at all because he's a hulking monster who fits inside zone blocking, not outside. At 6-foot-8, 374 pounds, he's even bigger than Orlando Brown Jr. and the Bears GM gave him a thumbs down in free agency because he didn't fit the scheme. Jones is a right tackle, though, which would be a position fit and lets the Bears keep Braxton Jones at left tackle. Jones also has plenty of experience on each side of the line with 170 plays as a left tackle in his first two years, then 1,553 at right tackle. Like Harrison, he allowed four sacks in his career.
Darnell Wright of Tennessee
A player with true experience at both tackle positions but maybe a bit too heavy for the Bears scheme as well. Still, players can lose weight and at 6-5, 333 Wright was able to run a 5.01-second 40, which is moving for a big man. Wright gave up 10 sacks in his college career and was regarded by PFF as a mediocre-to-poor pass blocker in his first three seasons but gave up none last year when they gave him an 80.2 pass-blocking grade. He started at left tackle in 2021, then at right tackle in 2022. He had 858 plays at right tackle and just 14 on the left side in his first two years and even played 56 snaps at right guard as a freshman.
It's at this point where the tackle crop gets cut off in Round 1.
Matthew Bergeron, Syracuse
One of the first tackles projected to go off the board in Round 2 according to NFL Draft Bible, Bergeron has some right tackle experience with 576 plays in his first two years at that spot, but played 1,946 plays on the left side. He's a more technically superior pass blocker than some of the other tackles with grades in the 80s according to PFF in each of the last two years, but did give up 13 sacks total and five last year.
Jaelyn Duncan, Maryland
He played all but nine snaps in college at left tackle but had some troubles protecting the quarterback with seven sacks allowed in 2022 and 12 total for his career. He had 30 hurries allowed. Size-wise he fits the scheme for the Bears at 6-6, 306 and at his Senior Bowl practices he was deemed a huge success with good footwork and technique as a pass blocker.
Tyler Steen, Alabama
Widely mocked as a third-rounder, he has plenty of experience with a winning top-level program and played left tackle all but one snap over the last three years. At 6-6, 321, he allowed 10 sacks in his career, including three last year.
Blake Freeland, BYU
BYU produces top pass-blocking tackles every year and did it again with Freeland, who had pass-blocking grades over 90 from PFF the last two years. He allowed no sacks last season and only two in four years of play. He only had two penalties last year. It's easy to see why he was able to get this done. At 6-8, 302 pounds, he is extremely quick and had a 4.98-second 40 at the combine. He is not particularly long-armed for being 6-8. He also had high PFF grades as a run blocker throughout his career but good run blocking for BYU isn't quite like mauling players in the SEC. NFLDB gives him a fourth-round grade.
Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven
