Kudos to the Bears for leaning heavily on improving the offense with how they went about drafting last weekend. And caps off to you, our wonderful readers, who made it this far in our series. We have reached its conclusion. And what a ride it has been!
Selecting Khyiris Tonga put a bow on Chicago’s 2021 NFL Draft class. And did so in a large way. Tonga was one of only two defensive players chosen by the Bears last week. But the pick is one that fits what the team is all about in the trenches. We’ve seen how putting a large human who eats space and blockers in the middle of the line of scrimmage does for Khalil Mack, Akiem Hicks, and others. So while I don’t believe Tonga is coming for Eddie Goldman’s job any time soon, it’s nice to see the Bears draft depth at what is clearly an important position on their defense.
STATS TO KNOW
• 2020 stats: Did not play
• Career stats: 40 games, 183 total tackles (143 solo), 10.5 tackles-for-loss, 1. sack, 8 interceptions, 1 defensive touchdown
• Accomplishments: Senior Bowl (2021), Second-team PFF All-Pac-12 (2019), Second-team AP All-Pac-12 (2018)
• Position ranking: 31st (ESPN), 12th (Pro Football Focus), 17th (The Draft Network), 24th (Pro Football Network)
HIGHLIGHTS
THREE STRENGTHS (FROM NFL.COM’s DRAFT PROFILE)
• “Impressive ball production as three-year starter.” … What stands out most in Graham’s profile is that he was a three-year starter and Oregon. That’s impressive, especially when you consider he was starting as a true freshman in the Pac-12. Teams don’t often hand true freshmen starting gigs off the bat. Doing so says a lot about Graham and what coaches thought of his talent and upside..
2021 Fantasy Football: Stash These Rookies in Your Dynasty Leagues
SI Fantasy analyst Michael Fabiano shares his must-have list of NFL rookies to stash your dynasty fantasy football leagues
Author:
May 7, 2021
Fantasy fans all know the names of the top rookies selected in the 2021 NFL Draft, including Trevor Lawrence, Najee Harris, Ja Marr Chase, and Kyle Pitts (to name a few), but what about the lesser-known players? Many of them might not impact the stat sheets as rookies, but there are many players out there who could push for bigger roles in their second NFL seasons and beyond. That s big for fantasy managers in dynasty leagues looking for that next hidden gem in their upcoming rookie-only drafts.
I’ll admit I was getting worried when the Bears had arrived to the sixth round without taking a receiver.
It’s not that I didn’t like their first four picks. Justin Fields and Teven Jenkins were gimmes. Larry Borom was a sensible selection given the need to add depth and the player’s prospect pedigree. Even Justin Herbert made sense on some level. But still … the Bears had a need at receiver that hadn’t been addressed. So it was good to see them do it in Round 6. And pretty neat that Newsome was their guy.
Newsome checks boxes for Matt Nagy’s offense. His game speed looks faster than his timed speed, which was in the 4.5s. And that game speed shows up when he has the ball in the open field. Phil Longo’s offense at Carolina sprinkled in screens, jet sweeps, and deep targets in a scheme that allowed Newsome to tap into his athleticism at a highly productive level.
• Chicago’s re-shaping of its running backs room pleases me. It has everything a modern group is supposed to have. A bell-cow at the top of the depth chart (David Montgomery), a backup who can give the starter a breather (Damian Williams), and a multi-purpose (multi-positional?) playmaker (Tarik Cohen). But it also brings in Khalil Herbert, who can be someone who eats at some of Williams’ snaps if his development goes swimmingly. Herbert could also snag some snaps from Cohen here and there. The way this room has been put together, no one should get overworked.
• Let’s not forget about Artavis Pierce or Ryan Nall. The Bears like Nall enough to retain him this offseason. And they liked Artavis Pierce enough to roster him last year. But both have their work cut out for them after the additions of Williams and Herbert.