Round 1, Pick 14 (14) Chris Williams OT 6'6" 315 Vanderbilt
Well suited to play left tackle, Williams should provide an upgrade to a unit
that struggled in 2007. He allowed just two quarterback sacks over a span of
1,558 offensive snaps at Vanderbilt.
Round 2, Pick 13 (44) Matt Forte RB 6'2" 222 Tulane
Forte was the focal point of the opposing defense every week and still put up
numbers. He's a high-character guy and will have a chance to upgrade the running
game in Chicago.
Round 3, Pick 7 (70) (From 49ers) Earl Bennett WR 6'0" 209 Vanderbilt
He put had great production at Vanderbilt, but did struggle at times against
high-rated cornerbacks. He was the first receiver in SEC history to have 75-plus
catches three straight years and is suited to play the slot, where he did most
of his damage in college.
Round 3, Pick 27 (90) (From Chargers) Marcus Harrison DT 6'3" 310 Arkansas
Harrison is a first-round talent, but injury and off-the-field issues pushed him
down the draft board.
Round 4, Pick 21 (120) (From Buccaneers) Craig Steltz S 6'1" 210 LSU
Stelz is a tough guy who is a sure tackler and comes up in run support. He made
20 starts at LSU and has a lot of experience at a top college program.
Round 5, Pick 7 (142) (From Panthers) Zackary Bowman CB 6'1" 197 Nebraska
Injury issues hampered Bowman's draft stock. He transferred to Nebraska and
played well for a defense that really struggled.
Round 5, Pick 23 (158)
(From Seahawks through Jaguars and Buccaneers) Kellen Davis TE 6'7" 262 Michigan State
Davis played both tight end and defensive end last year at Michigan State. Ran a
4.59 in the 40, impressive given his size, and had four sacks in limited time on
defense.
Round 7, Pick 1 (208) (From Dolphins)
Ervin Baldwin DE 6'2" 258 Michigan State
Baldwin played defensive end in college, but may project to linebacker in the
NFL because of his size. However, the Bears do like small defensive ends and he
could be a situational pass rusher in Chicago.
Round 7, Pick 15 (222) Chester Adams OG 6'4" 331 Georgia
The Bears took Adams looking for help on the interior of the offensive line.
Adams has bulk and could make the roster based on the lack of depth Chicago has
at guard.
Round 7, Pick 36 (243) (Compensatory selection) Joey LaRocque OLB 6'2" 226
Oregon State
LaRocque, a two-year starter, is better as an inside linebacker. He played
outside, but he projects more inside because of his limited speed.
Round 7, Pick 40 (247) (Compensatory selection) Kirk Barton OT 6'5" 310 Ohio
State
He's not overly athletic and lacks elite speed or strength.
Round 7, Pick 41 (248) (Compensatory selection) Marcus Monk WR 6'4" 222
Arkansas
The Bears get a receiver with size in Monk. He is a talented goal-line player
with ball skills.
Chicago Bears
2008 NFL Preview
The Bears have two major
problems. The first is that the offense scores something like 4
points a game with roughly the same amount of points scored as
turnovers. This creates the second problem. A pissed off defense and
a divided locker room. We are not sure that this team will not
implode upon the weight of its quarterbacks at some point this year.
The Bears have
two divisions: the one they share with Green Bay, Detroit and
Minnesota, and the one between their offense and defense.
Offense:
Do the Bears even have an offense? Cedric Benson has been
released so rookie Matt Forte is supposed to shoulder the load. Devin
Hester is the Bears only weapon really and they can only line him up in
one spot. The Bears gave lip service last year to being a run-first team
but now they're committing to it; that's one of the reasons Kyle Orton
is the quarterback. He's more careful will the ball and more accepting
of his role as a game manager than Rex Grossman was. Forte will get
plenty of opportunities, although he may be hampered by the Bears'
offensive line problems. The
loss of Bernard Berrian and Mushin Muhammad in free agency created a
gaping hole at wide receiver Look for another long year for the offense.
Defense: Luckily the Bears defense is one of the best in the
league. Lance Briggs and Brian Urlacher anchor a very strong unit and DT
Tommie Harris should return to form.
Overall: The defense will have to remain very good and carry the
offense again this year, if they are to get back to .500 or better, the
defense will have to carry them.
