It’s better to have proven talent than draft picks that might never fully materialize, and that was the Bears’ mindset when they traded for Khalil Mack.
General manager Ryan Pace sold off the team’s 2019 and ’20 first-round picks for Mack and filled out the heart of the Bears’ pass rush with Akiem Hicks on the defensive line and sack-master Robert Quinn opposite Mack. He’ll take his chances with those three for another season or two.
It’s a wise plan, and the many resources he has allocated to that position — the aforementioned trio has a collective $44.5 million salary-cap hit this season — it is arguably the strongest aspect of his team.
So heading into the draft, edge rusher isn’t much of a concern for the fearsome Bears. That’s just as well, because Pace has struggled to find the right prospects.
The most notable frustration was Leonard Floyd, whom he traded up to pick No. 9 overall in 2016. He managed just 18.5 sacks in 54 starts, despite playing opposite Mack for two years, and bottomed out at three last season.
Two seasons ago, when the Bears looked like potential Super Bowl contenders, they were third in the NFL with 50 sacks. They dropped to 24th last season with 32, in large part because Hicks was injured and Floyd didn’t produce. That left Mack facing a parade of double- and triple-teams.
The Bears’ top-heavy spending at the position limits their depth, and their draft priorities make it difficult to justify taking an outside linebacker or defensive end early. It’s essentially all or nothing on the Mack-Hicks-Quinn pass-rush trio.
Behind Mack and Quinn, they Bears are working to develop Isaiah Irving and James Vaughters. Both were undrafted. If the Bears find a pass rusher who looks good enough to overtake one of them as an attractive project, then it’d be worth spending a sixth- or seventh-round pick.
That’s likely the area the Bears will be shopping, if at all. It is possible to find pass-rushing talent late in the draft, but it’s difficult. Over the past decade, only seven players chosen in the fifth round or later posted a season of double-digit sacks (nine undrafted players have hit the mark). The most recent to do it was sixth-round pick Erik Walden with 11 for the Colts in 2016.
EDGE RUSHERS
Grading the Bears’ need: Low. While it’s always important to have a strong cast of pass rushers and the Bears need to be aware of Quinn’s age, they have many more important needs. This would be a late-round pick, if at all.
On the roster: Khalil Mack, Robert Quinn, Isaiah Irving, James Vaughters
The five best prospects: Ohio State’s Chase Young, LSU’s K’Lavon Chaisson, Penn State’s Yetur Gross-Matos, Iowa’s A.J. Epenesa, Alabama’s Terrell Lewis
Keep an eye on: Utah State’s Tipa Galeai. The Bears aren’t going to be able to get any recognizable name in the fifth round or beyond, but Galeai is intriguing. He is expected to slide because of a pedestrian senior season and his dismissal from TCU because of a 2017 assault. If the Bears believe he has turned himself around off the field and can play like he did as a junior, when he led the Mountain West with 10.5 sacks, he’s worth a look.
Close to home: Wisconsin’s Zack Baun. The former quarterback was an explosive pass rusher for the Badgers last season with 12.5 sacks and seven other tackles for loss. He’s undersized at 6-foot-2, 238, but is fast and versatile. He is projected to be a second-round pick.
