The Chicago Bears are set to draft a quarterback with the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft following their trade of Justin Fields on Saturday. Now, the Bears must do all they can in the next few months to avoid putting the rookie in the same terrible situation Fields was in when Chicago drafted him in 2021.
General manager Ryan Poles has added some help to the offense in the past week, which should help the rookie. The Bears’ trade for Keenan Allen will give the quarterback an elite second option to get the ball to besides D.J. Moore.
The Chicago Bears need to help a rookie QB transition to the NFL
But the Bears can and should do more for the expected draftee, Caleb Williams. The Bears have signed and traded for depth on the interior offensive line, but considerable improvements could be made at center and left tackle.
Bill Barnwell with ESPN thinks the Bears would be a perfect fit for one of the top two free agents left on the market this week. Barnwell believes the Bears should add a veteran quarterback for the rookie to learn from and a left tackle to upgrade the offense’s blindside protection.
Donovan Smith named a potential LT candidate
Barnwell wrote former Kansas City Chiefs left tackle Donovan Smith would be an upgrade over Braxton Jones for the upcoming season. While Smith needs to improve on being called for penalties, he has an impressive pass-block win rate:
Smith was a serviceable left tackle on a team that just won the Super Bowl. As I wrote before the big game, one of Patrick Mahomes‘ superpowers is avoiding sacks when pressured, but Smith posted a pass block win rate just under 91% during his lone season with Kansas City, suggesting he did a sound job of protecting Mahomes during the first 2.5 seconds of plays. That mark ranked 18th among all tackles.
Best fit: Chicago Bears. As Ryan Poles and company prepare for the Caleb Williams era, the one thing they’re clearly missing is an upgrade at left tackle, where Braxton Jones hasn’t nailed down a tough job over his first two seasons in the league. Signing Smith would give the Bears a veteran on Williams’s blindside while moving Jones into a swing role.
Smith would be an exciting option for the Bears, but I’m not convinced he could beat out Jones for the starting spot in training camp. Jones earned a 68.8 overall grade from Pro Football Focus for his play last season. Jones gave up just two sacks last season in 421 passing-blocking attempts. Jones is a better run blocker than Smith.
Smith earned a 55.4 overall grade for his play in the 2023 campaign, giving up two sacks. He earned a 45.1 run-blocking grade, which doesn’t seem like a plus for Shane Waldron’s offense. When it comes to yellow laundry, Jones and Smith were penalized nine times last season.
Ryan Tannehill as the Bears No. 2 QB?
Barnwell also thinks Ryan Tannehill would be an excellent addition to the quarterback room. At 35, Tannehill would have a lot to offer Williams or another rookie about how to survive in the NFL:
“The depth chart in Chicago consists of Tyson Bagent and Brett Rypien. Tannehill’s not going to push likely No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams for the starting job, but a little bit of veteran experience in the quarterback room wouldn’t hurt.”
If Tannehill could be signed cheaply, the Bears should consider bringing him on. The Bears need a veteran quarterback on the roster for training camp.
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