Chicago Bears NFL Draft 2008

How fast was that? Years in the past it has felt like it's taken a whole month for the draft to happen, but not this year. Thanks to Roger Goodell and the new time changes, it made for a very watchable and enjoyable experience. Overall I think the Bears did a decent job in this year's draft. Now before I talk about the last few drafts for the Bears, I just wanna say one thing -- Jimmy John's delivery sucks. Yea, freaky fast my ass. They only deliver to a 6 block radius. Lame. Seriously, lame. All I wanted to do was order way too many sandwiches, and sit around with my girl and watch the draft (she brought the idea to me, it was originally gonna be party subs...for 2 people. Isn't she great?), but nooooooo. I actually have to put on pants (I was actually already wearing pants, but thats not the point, its about principle here people) and leave the house to go pick up the too many sandwiches and barely make it back in time for the first pick (was anyone else crazy shocked when the Dolphins took Jake Long? I had no idea).

OKAY, back to the Bears. Here are the 2005-2008 drafts.


2005
#4 Cedric Benson - RB - Texas
#39 Mark Bradley - WR - Oklahoma
#106 Kyle Orton - QB - Purdue
#140 Airese Currie - WR - Clemson
#181 Chris Harris - FS - Louisiana Monroe
#220 Rod Wilson - LB - South Carolina

First four picks on offense. Benson's a borderline bust; Mark Bradley has been on and off IR, and is now off of it and is planning on contributing this season until the dreaded, yet expected, day comes when he blows out his knee for the twentieth time; Kyle Orton is a career 62.2 QB rating with 12 touchdowns and 15 interceptions (that's good, right?); After two trips to the IR in two years, Airese Currie is now on IR for the British Columbia Lions; Chris Harris started at free saftey and strong saftey, and then was traded to the Carolina Panthers for a 5th round draft pick in the 2008 draft; After an injury plagued rookie season, Rod Wilson has bounced back and contributed on special teams and as a back-up linebacker.

2006

#42 Danieal Manning - SS/CB - Abilene Christian
#57 Devin Hester - CB/KR - Miami
#73 Dusty Dvoracek - DT - Oklahoma
#120 Jamar Williams - LB - Arizona State
#159 Mark Anderson - DE - Alabama
#195 J.D. Runnels - FB/RB - Oklahoma
#200 Tyler Reed - OG - Penn State

This was a defense heavy draft, however the Bears received a gem in Devin Hester, who may contribute a lot on the offensive side of the football, one day.
Danieal Manning is a starting safety in the NFL, even if he doesn't always know where he's suppose to be; DEVIN HESTER, YOU ARE RIDICULOUS; Jury is still out on Dusty Dvoracek, he's gonna have to play more than one game in a row without getting injured first; I think Jamar Williams is going to be a good linebacker in the NFL, hopefully the Chicago Bears think that too; Mark Anderson...was he a one year/rookie phenomenon? please prove me wrong and show me that you can defend against the run too; I think JD Runnels is awesome, however JD Runnels' knees hate him, hopefully he'll be healthy and will get some playing time this season; Tyler Reed is on the Bears' practice squad, where he will stay until he stops playing football professionally


2007
#31 Greg Olsen - TE - Miami
#62 Dan Bazuin - DE - Central Michigan
#93 Garrett Wolfe - RB - Northern Illinois
#94 Michael Okwo - LB - Stanford
#130 Josh Beekman - OG/C - Boston College
#167 Kevin Payne - FS/SS - Louisiana Monroe
#168 Corey Graham - CB - New Hampshire
#221 Trumaine McBride - CB - Mississippi
#241 Aaron Brant - OT - Iowa

5 Defense, 4 Offense

Great pick at #31 with Greg Olsen, he will be one of the best tight ends in the NFL; Dan 'Buzz' Bazuin has yet to see a down in the NFL after being placed on the IR in early September with a knee injury; Garrett Wolfe is very, very little, but who knows, maybe he's got a big heart....and that heart will help him grow 5 inches and gain 40 pounds; Michael Okwo was a very good linebacker at Stanford, and I think he will be an average to above average lineback in the NFL, barring injury, which is something that kept him from playing last season; Josh Beekman will be a starting offensive guard in the NFL, he should win a starting job with the Bears this season at some point; Kevin Payne is basically the awesome, and I can't wait to see him on the field, fully healthy; Both Corey Graham and Trumaine McBride contributed last season, as soon as they get the hang of NFL receivers and NFL speed, they will be no worse than average corner backs; I don't even know who Aaron Brant is.

2008
Finally its back to 2008. The Bears took twelve players in this years draft, and here they are - -

#14 Chris Willaims - OT - Vanderbilt
#44 Matt Forte - RB - Tulane
#70 Earl Bennett - WR - Vanderbilt
#90 Marcus Harrison - DT - Arkansas
#120 Craig Steltz - SS - LSU
#142 Zack Bowman - CB - Nebraska
#158 Kellen Davis - TE/DE - Michigan State
#208 Ervin Baldwin - DE - Michigan State
#222 Chester Adams - OG/OT - Georgia
#243 Joey LaRocque - LB - Oregon State
#247 Kirk Barton - OT - Ohio State
#248 Marcus Monk - WR - Arkansas


Chris Williams has been a true left tackle since his junior season at Vanderbilt and started all 24 games over his final two seasons. He has great feet and phenomenal technique, however he does lack the upper-body strength that a left tackle would normally possess. Hopefully he'll be able to overcome his lack of physicality, and will use his feet and technique to his advantage. When the Bears selected him, I literally fell off the couch. It was the perfect pick for this team. Chris Williams is also a perfect character guy and he's very smart (engineering major at freakin Vanderbilt). Oh, and yes, I'm aware they didn't take Rashard Mendenhall, and yes, I'm aware he played for Illinois, and yes, I'm also aware he went to Niles West in Skokie...If you think the Bears' running game was worse than their offensive line, I would recommend you learn more about football and never talk to me again.


The Bears agree that their running game is more important than their passing game and they select Matt Forte in the second round. In his first three seasons, he started 18 games and ran for 2,138 yards with 16 touchdowns. As a senior he started all 12 games and rushed for 2,007 yards (second in the nation) with 22 touchdowns on 336 carries (thats a 6 yard per carry average). Basically, dude's a beast. He's big, he's strong, he runs downhill and leans into his runs. I'm excited.


As a true freshman, Earl Bennett started in 7 games finishing with 876 yards and nine touchdowns, in 2006 he had 82 receptions for 1,146 yards and six touchdowns. Last season he finished up with 75 catches for 830 yards and five touchdowns. Bennett lacks breakaway speed, but makes up for it in his exceptional route running abilities and his physicality allowing him to produce after the catch. Some say he's the next Hines Ward, others (mainly Bellwether Meltdown) say he's the next Bobby Engram. Either way, we'll see production out of him, how much is yet to be seen.


Ok, so Marcus Harrison... This guy has first round talent. He is a top 10 defensive tackle in the nation... However, he has 3 injuries under his belt, and some say he has character issues. I really hope that this was a steal here at pick 90. He only played 10 games his senior year, but finished the year with 50 tackles, seven for losses. If this turns into another Tank Johnson situation, this was a waste of a pick. That being said, I'm glad the Bears made a gamble with this guy, he has a lot of talent and upside.


Holy freakin crap do I love Craig Steltz. So will the city of Chicago. Big hitter, good vision, good against the pass, even better against the run. He will start this season at strong safety. He's a way more talented Adam Archuletta. His senior year he had 101 tackles with one sack, three forced fumbles and six interceptions. He's awesome, he's a grinder, and he's Chicago - I mean look at all those consonants in his last name. He's gonna hit people and eat polish sausage. Awesometown.



Zack Bowman and Kellen Davis are the two 5th round picks. No compute. Everything was going so well until now. A corner back? Really? Alright, fine, one of the best defensive backfields gets better, I guess. Bowman's had a bunch of injuries, but is very athletic and as long as he's healthy, he's a good addition to any team. Kellen Davis... Ok, so I understand the Bears cut tight end John Gilmore, but our two starters will be Des Clark and Greg Olsen. Are the Bears planning on running a three tight end set? Is Des Clark on his way out? Or did the Bears just not realize they could pick up a serviceable tight end in free agency and not waste a fifth round pick on an above average, six foot seven, two hundred and seventy pound tight end (he's a giant). Maybe a nuclear winter is coming and in the 'new world' good tight ends will be used as currency. Until that happens, I won't fully understand this pick.



Now for the four hundred seventh round picks the Bears had this year... Ok, so it was only 5 picks, but still, thats a lot of 7th rounders. My philosophy with this is if the Bears got one good player out of these five, then it was worth it. Hopefully they got more than that. Alright, lets start with the defensive players taken in this round, Ervin Baldwin, defensive end out of Michigan State and Joey LaRocque, linebacker out of Oregon State. Baldwin had a breakout season last year, and is a decent pass rusher; His run defense however is skeptical at best. Joey LaRocque is very smart, but is slow and not super athletic, he's a nice addition to the practice squad...



The offensive linemen that were taken here are solid seventh round picks, which basically means they're good at one thing, and maybe they'll learn how to do everything else (but probably won't). So, let me get this straight Sauce, you're telling me that they couldn't learn how to be a complete player at their position during their four years in college, but now that they're playing among the best in the world, they will suddenly learn and perfect their craft? Yes, that's what I'm telling you. Hey, it's happened before. No, seriously, I swear it has... Chester Adams, guard, Georgia. Not strong enough to play guard in the NFL. Not strong enough to drive defensive tackles off the ball. Probably better suited to be a (below average) offensive tackle. Kyle Barton, right tackle, Ohio State. Has a history of knee problems already. Was consistent at his position when playing, and is fundamentally sound. Many have said he has a 'mean streak,' I'm almost 100% positive that will make up for his lack of speed and strength...<===sarcasm.


Marcus Monk. What a steal with the Bears final selection in the draft. THIEVERY! This guy is a beast. He had a couple injury problems last season, but I wouldn't be worried. Also his '07 numbers weren't as good as they should have been because Arkansas focused their offense on some running back, some McFadden guy. Whatever, in 2006 he had 50 catches for 962 yards and 11 touchdowns. He's 6'6, 220 and has big play potential (anyone remember Bernard Berrian?). As long as his knee injury isn't an issue going into next season, Marcus Monk will play a big part in the passing game.... As long as the Bears have a passing game.

So that's the 2008 draft this year for the Chicago Bears. They upgraded at most of the positions they needed. They drafted at least 4 starters, maybe 6, and added good help on special teams and in back-ups.

Hey, the season starts next week, right? No? Oh... I have to wait through a whole baseball season first you say? Alright, I can do that...

MmmmmBearsssssss!!!