Mocking the Draft wants to introduce you to an new article series taking a closer look at each team’s draft workings. The WarRoom articles will give you a glimpse at the recent draft history and the decision-making structure of each NFL team. We will also include our thoughts about the structure and draft history.
Chicago Bears NFL Draft WarRoom
Offensive Scheme: Mike Martz is an offensive coordinator who loves to spread out the defense with multiple receiver sets and attacking deep down the field. However, head coach Lovie Smith loves controlling the football with a strong running game to avoid turnovers. This difference of opinions leads comprises on draft day.
Defensive Scheme: Lovie Smith drives the defense and employs his beloved Tampa-2 system. This means he tends to look for defensive lineman that can create pressure but also hold at the point. He looks for smaller, quicker linebackers that can flow to the ball and hold up in coverage. When it comes to drafting defensive players, Smith has the final say.
Thoughts: The Chicago Bears decision-making structure is pretty unique in that there is a great relationship between the head coach and GM. They work hand-in-hand to select players that fit their desired mold and specific schemes. The Bears recent drafts look thin because they traded away two first-round picks to acquire Jay Cutler.
However, it could be argued that the selections above really have not had a major impact on the football team.
They have been able to add several complementary pieces such as DJ Moore, Henry Melton, and Earl Bennett but have just not hit on a consistent basis. Matt Forte and Johnny Knox are the biggest wins in the recent drafts. However, there were too many selections like Jarron Gilbert, Juaquin Iglesias, and Chris Williams. Overall, I would say that the Bears do an average job adding talent through the draft but are plagued by inconsistency. For every good pick there is a pick of equal failure.
Five-year record: 47-33Coach: Lovie Smith
GM: Jerry Angelo
Recent Draft History: Gabe Carimi, Stephen Paea, Chris Conte, Nathan Enderle, JT Thomas, Major Wright, Corey Wootton, Joshua Moore, Dan LeFevour, J'Marcus Webb, Harvey Unga, Jarron Gilbert, Juaquin Iglesias, Henry Melton, D.J. Moore, Johnny Knox, Marcus Freeman, Al Afalava, Lance Louis, Derek Kinder, Chris Williams, Matt Forte, Earl Bennett, Marcus Harrison, Craig Steltz, Zack Bowman, Kellen Davis, Ervin Baldwin, Chester Adams, Joey LaRocque, Kirk Barton, Macus Monk
Best Pick: Matt Forte
Worst Pick: Chris Williams
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