Bear Digest

Another Bears Option at No. 9

The abundance of wide receivers in the draft makes for another potential target the Bears could find with the ninth pick in Round 1.
Gene Chamberlain|
Another Bears Option at No. 9
Another Bears Option at No. 9

In this story:

Chicago Bears

 With draft boards shaping up, a move in Mel Kiper's ratings appears to have given the Bears better receiver options at the ninth overall pick.

A team badly in need of another wide receiver or even two of them, the Bears wouldn't want to be drafting Caleb Williams or moving ahead with Justin Fields with the same group of ineffective targets they had last season other than DJ Moore and Cole Kmet.

The problem the Bears face is the draft's top three wide receivers could easily be gone by the time they draft No. 9 in Round 1, after taking Williams first overall.

If they moved down and opted to keep Fields, then they could solve the problem simply by drafting Marvin Harrison Jr., the consensus No. 1 receiver. But at what cost? They'd be giving up on the chance for the consensus top quarterback.

Mel Kiper Jr.'s latest big board for ESPN has wide receivers Malik Nabers from LSU and Washington's Rome Odunze ranked in the top six players overall. That would be a disappointment for the Bears.

If the picks came off on draft day according to that ranking, the Bears would be left looking at edge rushers or tackles. 

There's nothing wrong with an edge rusher or tackle—especially one of the top pass rushers. However, the need for another target and possibly two more is greater. According to Kiper's big board, they couldn't even take tight end Brock Bowers if they wanted because he's No. 7 and wouldn't last to ninth.

However, Kiper has an alternative in his newest rankings and he becomes a player then to pay particular attention to at the NFL Scouting Combine next week.

It's LSU's other receiver, Brian Thomas Jr. 

Not only has Thomas risen since the previous Kiper big board, he has shot completely up the charts. Kiper had receiver Keon Coleman from Florida State as his No. 4 receiver on his previous rankings. Now it's Thomas as the fourth receiver with Coleman dropping out of the overall top 25 and all the way down to sixth among wide receivers, behind Georgia's Ladd McConkey. Kiper has Thomas 11th overall.

If Thomas is indeed a player worthy of 11th in the draft, it solves an issue for the Bears. If they can't get one of the top three wide receivers, they could even trade back a slot or two and take Thomas and not feel as though they've wasted an opportunity at a player nearly of top-10 status.

They wouldn't need to waste a draft pick and take Bowers then, either. 

Not that Bowers would be unworthy of a high selection, but the Bears' offensive situation is one where they need speedy, deeper threats. They have the tight end already after paying Cole Kmet $50 million over four years. Drafting another tight end in Round 1 when they have big roster holes at pass rusher, wide receiver and even center or safety would be wasting opportunity.

Kyle Crabbs of FanNation's Athlon Sports saw the prototypical X-receiver in his scouting report of Thomas, which is exactly what the Bears would be looking for with this pick. 

They already have the 5-foot-11, do-everything receiver in Moore. They need the back-shoulder threat who can sky for the ball along the sideline or back of the end zone and also goes over the middle to provide a bigger target on third downs. It's essential with a passer like Williams, who moves around inside and outside the pocket looking for targets off script instead of running with it.

In his assessment, Crabbs jokes about Thomas ability calling him, "...just the casual 6-foot-4 wide receiver who taps into 22 mph+ on the GPS and wins vertically down the field. Nothing to see here!"

Thomas is said to be at his best in the air even if he is fast. He high-points and catches with his hands rather than his body.

"Thomas Jr. is blessed with the kind of raw tools you typically only see with a user-created player on Madden," Crabbs wrote.

If Thomas truly has the speed Crabbs talked about at 22 mph, then the combine will be interesting in the 40. 

Crabbs called Thomas' physical features a bit like Quentin Johnston's, but that's not exactly a huge compliment after a 38-catch rookie season with the Chargers. Johnston was a great success at the combine, though.

For the Bears, 38 catches last year would have been seven better than they got from their No. 2 wide receiver. 

They'd just be hoping for more, just the same, as they try to upgrade their passing game. It's possible Thomas could give them this chance while also even providing an extra draft pick later in a trade back a few spots. The Bears got a fourth-rounder out of Philadelphia last year for moving down one place so the Eagles could draft Jalen Carter.

It's a player who bears watching at Indianapolis for Chicago, if not beyond.

Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven

Published
Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.

Home/News