There are plenty of defensive options in the first round if the Chicago Bears prioritize that side of the ball in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. The defensive end and tackle positions seem to be the glaring need heading into the draft. The Bears could also help the offense with an offensive tackle or surprise take at wide receiver. One NFL analyst recently named a player the Bears should stay from this April.
The Chicago Bears are urged from taking a projected top-10 pick
The Bears are reportedly interested in drafting Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter if he’s still on the board when they pick at nine. That’s a big if, as the talented Carter was considered the top draft prospect before NFL Scouting Combine when legal issues surfaced. That situation has been handled, but questions still remain about Carter’s maturity.
Carter is a risky pick inside the top five this year. That would be an obvious choice for the Bears to have pause on, but Jake Rill with Bleacher Report named another top defensive prospect for general manager Ryan Poles to stay from.
Rill thinks the Chicago Bears should stay away from Illinois cornerback Devon Witherspoon. Many draft analysts project Witherspoon to be a top-ten pick. With Poles interested in taking players who are familiar with Chicago’s geography, Witherspoon has been logically linked to the Bears, who need elite play at cornerback. Rill wrote the team has other pressing needs they need to take first:
“In order to land Witherspoon, they’d likely have to use the No. 9 overall pick on him, as he’s one of the top CB prospects in the class.
There are more pressing needs on Chicago’s roster, as it has Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon as two solid starting cornerbacks. Plus, it may behoove the Bears to trade down and acquire more draft picks, which would likely take them out of the running for Witherspoon anyway.
If Chicago really wants Witherspoon, then it could likely find a way to incorporate him into its plans, and he should be a strong NFL player. It just seems like there are better options for the Bears than taking him in the first round, unless they’re somehow able to trade down again and still land him.”
This logic makes sense to me. However, Poles is known for taking players on the secondary if it makes sense on his draft board, as he showed last year when he chose safety Jaquan Brisker and cornerback Kyler Gordon when he needed players on the offensive line and wide receiver. The Bears paid for it with Justin Fields sitting out at the end of the season and Poles giving up draft capital to trade for two wide receivers with low production in 2022.
Witherspoon is a risk anyways
Witherspoon isn’t a sure pick for the Bears at nine. According to Lance Zierlein with the NFL.com, Witherspoon isn’t a lock to be a number one cornerback:
“Witherspoon is a fun watch but requires evaluators to carefully consider his strengths and weaknesses relative to scheme. He plays with anticipation, route feel and a consistent sense of urgency to prevent catches, as displayed by his high number of pass breakups. He plays with ballhawking eyes and good balance from zone coverage and is very aggressive tackling both after the catch and in run support.
There are snaps where he gets behind and stays behind due to a lack of premium speed and closing burst, so he might require help over the top or a more zone-oriented scheme to help him shine. The playmaking mentality and traits give him a solid chance to become a CB2 in the league.”
There’s no reason for the Bears to take Witherspoon at nine can’t be the number one corner in a few years. The Bears need an actual lockdown corner. They already have Jaylon Johnson filling that role. And Kyler Gordon is yet trying to progress into that role.
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