Sometimes, reading detailed scouting reports can be exhausting for casual football fans. While they love following the draft, they’d rather get a summarized idea of who they might be getting when their team selects a certain prospect in the 1st round. One way to help illustrate this is by using favorable comparisons to established NFL players. According to NFL.com draft analyst Lance Zierlein, Joe Burrow was compared to Kurt Warner when he arrived in 2020. Quinnen Williams was compared to Jonathan Allen. Both proved surprisingly accurate. That led to an interesting question. Who might the Chicago Bears be getting with the 9th pick, depending on who they take?
Before people ask, Zierlein compared quarterback Caleb Williams, the presumptive #1 pick, to Arizona Cardinals Pro Bowl Kyler Murray. That isn’t hard to understand, given that both are shorter and mobile and played for Lincoln Riley in college. There is way more intrigue when you list the potential names GM Ryan Poles could snag a few picks later. Here is a short list of possibilities.
- WR Rome Odunze – Larry Fitzgerald
- TE Brock Bowers – George Kittle
- OT JC Latham – Jawaan Taylor
- OT Taliese Fuaga – Taylor Decker
- EDGE Jared Verse – LaMarr Woodley
- EDGE Laiatu Latu – T.J. Watt
- EDGE Dallas Turner – Brian Burns
- DT Byron Murphy II – Ed Oliver
The Chicago Bears could be in a terrific spot.
Many hope Odunze will still be on the board when the Bears are back on the clock. When you see him compared to one of the four or five greatest receivers in NFL history, it becomes easier to understand why. It is also easier to understand the reason many rate Turner higher than Verse. Woodley was an excellent player during his peak years in the late 2000s, finishing with 58 career sacks in nine seasons. However, Burns is one of the best pass rushers in the NFL today, sitting at 46 sacks in only five seasons. Yet the fact Latu earned the Watt comparison is a reminder of why many view him as the most natural rusher in this class. The lingering concern is the neck injury he suffered in college.
Perhaps the most noteworthy comparison is Murphy. It is no secret that head coach Matt Eberflus has sought a dynamic interior pass rusher for years. Ed Oliver had 9.5 sacks for Buffalo from the interior last season. Not only that, but new Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Eric Washington developed him. If Zierlein is even remotely accurate with some of these comparisons, it becomes far easier to understand why staying at #9 and just taking the best player on the board is the smarter play.
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Alt is a Pisces. Pass.
@Dr. Melhus — If (and that’s a huge “if”) the Bears were to get Joe Alt in the NFL draft, it would be change like we haven’t before seen. I wouldn’t think of trading Bears current starting LT Braxton Jones — he may be the Bears best right tackle — but he’d have to prove it (along with every other O-lineman on the team). If by some wild chance the Bears were to adhere to the promise of starting “the five best guys” on the offensive line (and do away with the Ryan Poles’ favoritism) the offense would be scary!… Read more »
Drafting a Pisces at #9 would be a huge mistake.
Fuaga is an Aries, so he would slot right into the RG position, and perform well, especially in a straight forward smashmouth running game. You would have to live with typical tendencies of Aries, which is impatience and impulsiveness, but that’s common with all rookie OLmen, with false starts and all.
@blockwood: Edge is the biggest need, and if Turner falls to the Bears, great. But picking purely on need is the recipe to get teams that scrape into the playoffs for an early exit in their good years. If you have a great player on the board, you have to take that great player. More accurately, if you have a player with a high probability of being great to elite, pull the trigger, and make your team better. I’d rather take Odunze or Alt than reach for a player like Verse at #9. They can find a very good DE… Read more »