This year’s NFL Draft was one the craziest drafts in history. Although recency bias often clouds our judgement, this draft was without a doubt one of the most entertaining and unpredictable ever.
Goff at one and Wentz at two went as expected, but not much else did. Laremy Tunsil, offensive tackle from Ole Miss, was a potential first overall pick a few weeks ago and still expected to go top five. That is, until his Twitter was hacked right before the draft, releasing a video of him smoking through a gas mask. Although the video is reportedly four or five years old, it still brought about potential character issues and caused him to drop to 13. To make matters worse, shortly after Tunsil was drafted his Instagram was hacked which revealed images of texts between him and an assistant coach showing Tunsil receiving improper benefits.
Tunsil wasn’t the only previously projected top 5 pick to stumble. Defensive end Robert Nkemdiche and linebackers Myles Jack and Jaylon Smith all took a tumble as well. Nkemdiche was taken 29th in the first round, but Jack and Smith both had to wait until the second day to hear their names called. Smith got picked 34th by the Cowboys and then the Jaguars select Jack two spots later.
One of the biggest winners of the draft was Urban Meyer and the Ohio State Buckeyes. Three of the top ten picks were Buckeyes. Also, they were the first team ever to have a player selected at every defensive position. After years of Alabama domination, Urban Meyer and his Buckeyes stole the show this year.
The Chicago Bears were another big winner. They were also big movers, negotiating several deals throughout the seven rounds. Their first trade was to move up from 11 to 9, nabbing Georgia linebacker Leonard Floyd. Their next selection was at 41st overall, but they traded down to 49 and then again to 56, where they selected Kansas State’s offensive lineman Cody Whitehair.
The Bears selected a defensive lineman, Jonathan Bullard, in the third round. With their three fourth round picks the Bears picked another linebacker in Nick Kwiatkoski and two safeties, Deon Bush and Deiondre’ Hall. Chicago drafted their third defensive back, DeAndre Houston-Carson, in the sixth round.
To go along with Whitehair as the only offensive players selected, Chicago picked running back Jordan Howard and wide receiver Daniel Braverman in the 5th and 7th round respectively. Overall the Bears selected six defensive players and only three offensive players. Their goal is to shore up a very weak secondary after they allowed the seventh most touchdown passes and were tied for second fewest interceptions. After a successful draft, hopefully the Bears can improve on their disappointing 6-10 record.