The Chicago Bears seem to have maintained their focus at certain areas throughout the process leading up to the NFL draft this April. Running back is one of them but another has been defensive back. This is no surprise given they just lost two starters in Adrian Amos and Bryce Callahan. It’s never a bad thing to seek out future replacements.
A number of names have floated across their radar to this point, but it seems another one can be added to the list. According to Tony Pauline of Draft Analyst, Bears representatives were set to meet with cornerback Xavier Crawford down at the Central Michigan pro day. Crawford is the lesser known of the two corners from that team, the other being Sean Bunting.
He certainly has intriguing measurables, standing a rangy 6’1. However, it may have been his test scores that drew their attention the most.
“Crawford’s official 40 time was 4.40 seconds, though some stopwatches had him as fast as 4.36 seconds. This represents a one-tenth improvement from his combine mark.
Crawford had one-on-ones with the New England Patriots, Oakland Raiders, New York Giants and Chicago Bears.”
Oh my. Central Michigan CB Xavier Crawford (@XCrawford_22) runs an unofficial 4.3-second 40-yard dash. pic.twitter.com/NiXMhBNmvy
— Evan Petzold (@EvanPetzold) March 14, 2019
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A 6’1 cornerback who can run with sub-4.40 speed? Yeah, it’s not hard to see why the Bears would be interested.
Chicago Bears Xavier Crawford interest has project feel to it
Crawford is not what people would call a polished product. Though he started for three years in college, he only has two interceptions total. So his ball skills come into question. At the same time, his athletic upside is obvious. That mixture of size and speed can make it at the NFL level if it’s coached up properly.
Since the Bears now employ Chuck Pagano, a noted defensive backs specialist as their defensive coordinator, a talent like Crawford in the later rounds would make sense. A personal project for Pagano to tinker with in hopes the kid might blossom into an eventual starter.
It’s far from a guarantee, but not unheard of either. Crawford could end up being one of those athletes who turn out to be a better pro than college player. Either way, this will be another name to watch when day three of the draft kicks off next month.
