Chicago Bears: What They Must Do in April’s NFL Draft?
Published by Tyler Moore on April 7, 2012
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears have done a nice job so far this off-season, and new GM Phil Emery is making his presence felt.
Let’s recap some of the moves that Emery has made thus far.
Emery has addressed the wide receiver position, when he traded two third-round picks to the Miami Dolphins for Brandon Marshall.
Phil Emery then placed the franchise tag on unhappy running back Matt Forte. He also addressed the back-up quarterback position, when he signed Jason Campbell.
Emery also signed notable free agents like running back Michael Bush, Kelvin Hayden and Eric Weems. The Chicago Bears’ GM also resigned key players like Tim Jennings, Israel Idonije and Craig Steltz.
Special teams stand-out Corey Graham decided not to return to the Bears, instead signing a two-year contract with the Baltimore Ravens. The Bears still need to decide whether or not they are going to bring back free agent defensive tackle Amobi Okoye.
The Chicago Bears hold the 19th overall pick in April’s NFL Draft, and there are a few areas that still need to be addressed. The Bears still have not made the offensive line a priority in free agency, and they must address it if they want to keep Jay Cutler upright this season.
The Bears could target Stanford’s offensive tackle Jonathan Martin with the 19th overall pick if he falls to them. The most likely scenario sees the Bears drafting former Ohio State offensive tackle Mike Adams.
Other offensive tackles the Bears could select in the draft are Zebrie Sanders out of Florida State, offensive guard Kevin Zeitler out of Wisconsin, and Brandon Mosley out of Auburn.
Another direction the Chicago Bears could target at No. 19 is defensive end. Former Alabama standout Courtney Upshaw would make a lot of sense, and could have a nice year playing opposite Julius Peppers. However, the more likely option is Illinois defensive end Whitney Mercilus.
The Chicago Bears could also consider Marshall defensive end Vinny Curry, former Southern California defensive end Nick Perry, and Clemson defensive end Andre Branch.
Other players the Chicago Bears could target at 19th are former Notre Dame wide receiver Michael Floyd, Baylor wide receiver Kendall Wright, Alabama safety Mark Barron and cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick.
The Chicago Bears have picks in each round of the draft, and must draft wisely if they want to become a Super Bowl contender this season.
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