Reviewing the Bears Draft

Round 1, Pick 31: TE Greg Olsen, Miami

Considering where the Bears were in the draft, Olsen was a great pick. They were said to like Auburn guard Ben Grubbs and Central Michigan tackle Joe Staley, but after both went right before pick 31, the choice was a little easier. Apparently the Bears had Olsen rated higher then both anyways. After going with defense in last year’s draft (a move everyone bashed at the time but turned out being extremely smart), the Bears knew they had to add an offensive playmaker, and tight end was the perfect position to do it at. While we would have loved Dwayne Jarrett, the Bears really didn’t need a wide receiver, as they later proved by not selecting one the entire draft. The Bears’ receivers are often overlooked but they’re better then people realize. Everyone knows about Moose and Berrian, but Mark Bradley and Rashied Davis aren’t slouches either. Bradley was a high second round pick in 2004 that has battled injury problems but has been productive when he’s on the field. If he stays healthy this season, look for Bradley to breakout. And hey, if he doesn’t, the Bears can always take a wideout next year, right? Rashied Davis is the perfect #4, a reliable, inexpensive player who made some huge catches last season, most notably against the Bucs and in the playoffs versus the Seahawks. The Bears couldn’t really justify committing first round money to a wide receiver, unless he was a complete stud like Calvin Johnson, but the selection of Olsen will give the offense a similar effect. Desmond Clark had his best season as a Bear in 2006, but he’s no where near the receiving threat Olsen is. He’s not yet a polished blocker, but as a rookie, Olsen can make an impact in the passing game. He’s fast enough to run under those infamous Rex Grossman overthrows and has the hands to pull them in. Plus, you have to like that he was clearly the best player on very talented Miami offense last season. Since the Bears are going to use shotgun this season, and will presumably be passing more often, Olsen’s addition was a necessity. Everyone knows the best way to beat a cover 2 defense is by throwing to the tight end, a defense two teams in the Bears’ division run (though the Vikes may switch it up since they lost d-coordinator Mike Tomlin), so they had to draft a tight end eventually. They didn’t during a strong crop last season, but that move paid off as the Bears’ were able to get Olsen at a good value in this draft. By the way, did we mention that the boy can rap, son?

Round 2, Pick 62: DE Dan Bazuin, Central Michigan

The Bears traded down from pick 37 (originally acquired in the Thomas Jones trade) and got a bushel full of goodies from the San Diego Chargers. The teams swapped second round picks, and the Chargers also threw in a third, fifth, and third round picks in next year’s draft. There was no way could the Bears turn that deal down, even with some pretty good prospects like Justin Blaylock and Arron Sears still on the board. The pick at 62, Bazuin, surprised a lot of people, but we love what we’re hearing about him so far. To be honest, we never even heard of the dude before they called his name, but Jerry Angelo has done that to us a few times before (Charles Tillman, Lance Briggs…Roosevelt Williams) and it’s worked out ok. Just read this little snippet from the teams’ official website and we dare you to tell us he’s not one of your favorite Bears’ already:

A three-time All-MAC first-team honoree, Bazuin holds the school career records for tackles for loss (60) and sacks (33) and single-season records for tackles for loss (26 1/2) and sacks (16). His 16 sacks in 2005 tied what was then a MAC single-season record. He ranks eighth in MAC history in tackles for loss and fourth in sacks.

As you can check out here, his senior season at Central Michigan was great, but just look at that junior year. 74 tackles, 26.5 tackles for loss, and 16 sacks in only 11 games? That’s unreal. Plus, he’s already got a sweet nickname, Buzz, and his own official website (still not as cool as this one, though). What’s not to love about this guy? The only curious thing is that defensive end is probably the Bears’ strongest position. But if Buzz can push either Brown or Oguleye out the door (two guys who we really like, especially Brown), it will free out some cap space for upcoming free agents like Tommie Harris, Tillman, and Vash Dog. There’s even talk already that he could bulk up from 265 and play defensive tackle. We haven’t been this excited about a Bears’ second round draft pick in a while. It’s Bazuin time!

Round 3, Pick 93: RB Garrett Wolfe, Northern Illinois

While the Bears were on the clock, we were talking online to one of our buddies and he said he thought Angelo had something up his sleeve with this pick. And wouldn’t you know it, Angelo unveils a draft pick of epic proportions with NIU running back Garrett Wolfe (Immediately following the pick our friend said “I bet Angelo gives his wife the shocker every night,”. We’re not sure if that’s relevant, but we thought you should know). This is a pick Bears fans will surely love and it also fills a need. Wolfe will be the lightning to Cedric Benson’s thunder, and after the success another small running back, Maurice Jones Drew, had as a rookie last season, fans will expect him to make an immediate impact. A local hero at NIU who might have been the front runner for the Heisman at one point last season, Wolfe is only 5’7 but was extremely productive for the Huskies. He apparently had a jaw dropping private workout with the Bears where he was timed around 4.39 and got up close to 20 bench reps. Of course everyone is going to love a jacked, fast, local guy on the Bears. Angelo really excited the fan base with this pick. Another one of our friends called and mentioned he thinks Wolfe will be the Bears’ starting running back by 2008. Worth noting, but it sounded like he was about 16 beers into his night, so we’re not sure how relevant that opinion is either.

Round 3, Pick 94: LB Michael Okwo, Stanford

Selecting a linebacker at some point during this draft was a necessity with Lance Briggs breaking the record for the most times the word “disgruntled” has ever been used to describe someone in a three month period. We honestly don’t know too much about Okwo, but scouting director Greg Gabriel said he’s an instinctive playmaker. Since we’re not doing you any good, you check out Okwo here.

Round 4, Pick 130: G Josh Beekman, Boston College

After targeting Staley and Grubbs earlier, you knew the Bears would take an offensive lineman somewhere in this area. Beekman was on top of Mel Kiper’s Best Players Available list for a while, and seem like a nice player. It would seem like tackle is more of a pressing issue then guard, but if Beekman was a better prospect then all the available tackles, he had to be the pick. Hopefully he'll be better for the Bears then the last BC offensive lineman they took, Marc Colombo.

Round 5, Pick 167: S Kevin Payne, Louisiana Monroe

This is another guy who we didn’t hear of before they called his name, but already love. The Bears’ have had pretty good success with defensive backs from Louisiana in the past and Payne looks like another steal. One Bears’ scout was quoted as saying that they liked him more then any safety besides LaRon Landry and were shocked he was still available in the fifth round. Those are some big words, hopefully Payne can back them up. From what we’ve read, Payne just seems like a real interesting cat who's to be a great athlete. Take a look at this:

Upon enrolling at Louisiana-Monroe in 2002, Payne redshirted while performing on the scout team as a tailback. He took over running back chores in 2003, earning All-Sun Belt Conference second-team honors. He led the team and ranked third in the league in rushing with 976 yards and six touchdowns on 248 carries (3.9 avg.). He also finished second on the team with 41 receptions for 488 yards (11.9 avg.) and three scores. He ranked fourth in the Sun Belt with an average of 122.0 all-purpose yards per game, even more impressive when you consider the ULM offense ranked 100th in the nation in total offense (319.83 ypg) and 109th in rushing (98.83 ypg).
Payne moved to the defensive side of the ball in 2005, starting at both strong and free safety. He was again named All-Sun Belt Conference second-team, as he led the team with 87 tackles (61 solos), including four stops behind the line of scrimmage. He recovered a fumble, caused two others and also intercepted two passes. Payne also had good success on special teams, returning 13 kickoffs for 374 yards (28.8 avg.). In brief action on offense, he added 19 yards on a reception.
The 2006 season saw Payne take on a daunting task, filling in for departed All-Sun Belt punter Joel Stelly. In addition to his free safety duties, Payne punted 45 times for 1,826 yards (40.8-yard average).

So the Bears drafted a running back/wide receiver/safety/punter in the fifth round. That’s pretty exciting, right?

The rest of the Bears 2007 draft went like this:

Round 5, Pick 167: CB Corey Graham, New Hampsire
Round 7, Pick 221: CB Trumaine McBride, Ole Miss
Round 7, Pick 241: OT Aaron Brant, Iowa State