Bears Blitz

Published by Bob Warja on April 28, 2012
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears

The 2012 NFL Draft has ended, and while it was one of the more interesting drafts in recent memory, it was an especially important one for the Bears, who are expected to contend for the Super Bowl this season.

Bears GM Phil Emery had already done a masterful job through trades and free agency up to this point, so he deserves the benefit of the doubt on the draft, which is his expertise. In fact, the Bears hired him largely because of his scouting prowess.

But that doesn’t mean that his picks should be absolved of any scrutiny. It is the media’s job to help hold guys accountable for their decisions, with the obvious caveat that no one—scouts, GM, front office, players, media or the fans—knows for sure how these picks will ultimately turn out until much later.

That said, it is my job to give my opinion on these picks. To rehash their picks on Thursday and Friday, I gave the Shae McClellin a B-, the Alshon Jeffery selection a B and the Brandon Hardin pick a C-.

I like McClellin the more I analyze this, but I just felt there were two more certain DE choices at that point in the draft. As for Jeffery, I like the pick although there certainly are legitimate questions surrounding his work ethic and desire to stay in shape.

But the Hardin pick was a real head-scratcher to me. He looks like a good player, but I feel the third round is too early to take such a risk on a player who missed an entire season to injury.

Now, moving on to Saturday’s portion of the draft, here is how I see it for the Bears.

Round 4: Evan Rodriguez, TE, Temple

I have three main problems with this pick. First, his lack of size. While tight ends at 6’1″ have had solid NFL careers—the Patriots‘ Aaron Hernandez comes to mind—you usually want a massive guy at the position.

Second, I really would have preferred the Bears take the player selected at the next pick—Bobby Masse, OT, Mississippi. The Bears haven’t done anything to improve the offensive line so far. Now, I understand that under Mike Tice, he will do more max protect and no more seven step drops, but J’Marcus Webb was awful last season.

Third, I liked Orson Charles better at the tight end position. He was taken by Cincinnati five picks after the Bears selection. He’s a ‘tweener like Rodriguez, but he’s about an inch or so taller and is a better blocker with good strength (35 reps on the bench press).

But it’s not a horrible pick. Rodriguez may be undersized but he’s an h-back type who catches the ball well and runs hard after the catch. And Tice is expected to bring back the TE position that Mike Martz ignored.  The guys they have right now are primarily blockers, which helps the run game, but Rodriguez gives them flexibility as an outlet receiver.

Rodriguez had official 40 time of 4.53 at combine. To compare, former Bears’ Greg Olsen ran a 4.51.

GRADE: C+

The Bears had no fifth round pick as they traded it to move up to select Jeffery in round two.

Round 6: Isaiah Frey, CB, Nevada

In the sixth round, they had the 184th pick and they drafted Nevada CB Isaiah Frey. Frey led the Western Athletic Conference with 16 passes broken up this season. He also had five interceptions and 37 tackles.

Frey is a sleeper prospect who could be developed, but the only way he will contribute this season is on special teams. Then again, this late in the draft, you can’t really ask for much more.

He played a majority of man coverage at Nevada. Meanwhile, I am a little surprised that the Bears haven’t taken an offensive lineman or a defensive tackle. But this looks like a solid pick.

GRADE: B 

Round 7: Greg McCoy, CB, TCU

In the seventh and final round, with the 220th pick, the Bears selected McCoy, a defensive back out of TCU. Hey, it’s the seventh round, so no reason to get too excited or concerned, but I liked Boise State’s Nate Potter as the last OT in the draft who had a chance to stay on the left side in the pros.

Potter went to the Cardinals with the very next pick following the Bears’ pick.

Meanwhile, McCoy sounds a bit like Tim Jennings. But I really wonder what happened to Alfonzo Dennard? My reports on him had him going somewhere in rounds three or four. He would have been another good choice for the Bears unless there’s something going on that I’m not aware of with this kid.

I also liked Nathan Stupar, an OLB from Penn State and Antonio Allen, a safety out of East Carolina. Both players were still on the board when the Bears made their selection.

But you really cannot grade a seventh round prospect easily, because these picks seldom even stick with a team.

GRADE: B-

Overall, I thought the draft was one of those that I guess you just have to trust that Emery knows what he’s doing because on the surface there were some questionable choices made. The fact that they ignored defensive tackle depth and the offensive line is interesting too.

OVERALL DRAFT GRADE: C+

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