Mocking It on Wild Side for Bears

Several mock drafts this week have strayed from the path most mocks have taken for the Bears.

Maybe it's that time of the mock drafting season but everyone is going off the rails this week.

Mock drafts offer up very strange choices for the Bears with little explanation. It's possible mock drafters are just tired of seeing Peter Skoronski or Paris Johnson Jr. mocked to the Bears at No. 9.

PFF's Unbeaten Path

Gordon McGuinness and Mike Renner of Pro Football Focus had mocks, McGuinness' with a twist. His has 32 separate three-round mocks for each team. This led to the confusing situation where some players appeared on more than one team's list of draft picks.

McGuinness' mock came up with the Bears taking TCU wide receiver Quentin Johnston, which would stun people in Chicago to say the least. Besides not being an offensive or defensive lineman, Johnston is a player at a position the GM Ryan Poles has already addressed and isn't even the receiver Bears fans or their quarterback would choose. Justin Fields on a podcast and Bears fans throughout the offseason on social media have pointed at Ohio State's Jaxon Smith-Njigba as a player they'd want at this position.

The picks made in Rounds 2 and 3 leave some questions, as well. For one, McGuinness had them taking two cornerbacks: Kansas State's Julius Brents at No. 61 and TCU's Tre'Vius Hodges-Tomlinson at No. 64.

Both are good players and you can always use cornerbacks. This position looks like a pick for the Bears possibly at 64 or later as Kindle Vildor's starting spot is a bit shaky. However, two taken between 61-64 when the team has defensive line and offensive line needs unmet in the first round seems a bit strange.

Then this mock has the Bears taking USC's Tuli Tuipulotu and lists him as an edge player, which he really is at 266 pounds. But they talk about him as a three technique. A 266-pound three technique will be mashed up and ground to a pulp in a week in the NFL. NFL Draft Bible rates him the fifth-best defensive tackle in the draft. This mock had him going to the Bears at No. 53 overall. There would be plenty of head scratching if the Bears took this route.

The other draft from PFF conducted by Renner, gave them a tackle but neither of those mentioned prominently as the top two. In fact, it was Darnell Wright from Tennessee, who until the last three weeks had been thought of as the fourth or fifth tackle available.

The logic was they'd have a scary offensive line in the run game with him. They already had that. What they need is a quick-footed lighter tackle who blocks the wide zone but is an excellent pass blocker.

There was some logic expressed behind the pick as he's called the best right tackle in the draft, and the Bears need someone at this position. But scheme does enter into the equation.

After that, Renner had more conventional picks and solid thinking with a pair of interior defensive lineman and an edge rusher.

The first edge at 53 was BJ Ojulari from LSU, brother of the Giants' Azeez. He had 16 1/2 sacks for the Tigers. The other, at 61, was Derick Hall from Auburn.

"The Bears are not leaving the 2023 NFL Draft without addressing their defensive line in a big way," Renner wrote.

Hall is 6-3, 251 and made 19 1/2 sacks over four seasons for the Tigers against quality SEC opponents. He also was tenacious against the run with 29 1/2 tackles for loss. Players like Hall and Ojulari are exactly why the Bears could focus on offensive line in Round 1. There are still quality edge players afterward.

Dexter could fit the Bears defense either as the one technique or the three technique as he's 6-6, 303. He'd be tried at the three, no doubt, as he has flashed pass rushing moves with 10 1/2 saks in three seasons.

Reaching a Bit

Surprisingly, NFL.com veteran draft analyst Lance Zierlein has the Bears taking a more risky pass rusher with the ninth pick. He took Lukas Van Ness from Iowa.

Van Ness is a good fit for the style of defensive end coach Matt Eberflus likes as he's stout against the run. However, he wasn't even a full-time player much of the time at Iowa. 

Van Ness might be a good pick if a quarterback or two start falling and the Bears have the opportunity to trade back out of No. 9, but it's too early for him in the top 10.

Sanity Restored

Sanity was restored with four mocks posted by CBS Sports on Tuesday.

Ryan Wilson and Josh Edwards have the Bears drafting Northwestern tackle Peter Skoronski while sees Ohio State's Paris Johnson Jr. instead.

It's Chris Trapasso who takes the risky approach with Smith-Njigba going No. 9 to the Bears. For the Bears to take a wide receiver at No. 9 with offensive and defensive line issues staring them straight in the face, especially after trading for DJ Moore and Chase Claypool, would indeed lead to real post-draft scrutiny for Poles.

Fans and Fields would love it, though.

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