Chicago Bears 2011 Draft Report

Chicago Bears Draft Selections

1st round (29): Gabe Carimi OT, Wisconsin

2nd Round (62): Stephen Paea DT, Oregon State

3rd Round (93): Chris Cante S, California

5th Round (160): Nathan Enderle QB, Idaho

6th Round (195): J.T Thomas OLB, West Virginia                                   

Impact Player selection: Stephen Paea DT, Oregon State
-Both Paea and Carimi will be starters for the Bears going into Week 1. Jay Cutler desperately needs protection and Carimi can be a nice starter at RT. But for an impact player I think you have to look at Paea. He is a stout DT who has very impressive strength and can be a gap filler for the Bears. Tommie Harris is gone and paea has shown he can get past the blockers to force inside pressure on the QB. He still needs to work on staying with a blocker to long. He can start right away at DT and when he progresses more can play DE.

Pick for the Future: Nathan Enderle QB, Idaho
-Taking Enderle in the 5th round could turn into a nice value for the Bears. Enderle has the tools to be a very nice QB but is very raw and needs several years to learn the game of football, and learn how to be an NFL QB. There is still a chance Enderle does not pan out and just ends up a late cut if everything goes badly. But Mike Martz has proven to be a good teacher for young players and in a year Enderle can be a nie backup for Jay Cutler. A true pick for the future, and someone who if develops the right way could be traded in later years for a higher pick.

Questionable pick: Chris Conte S, California
-Conte was primarily a CB at California early in his career before he was moved to Safety as a senior.  He had some problems adjusting to the position at the college level, but that could have been because of it being his first time there. If he can learn to play safety and play ti well in the NFL, this could be a good pick. But in the 3rd round to take a chance on a guy that is playing a new position, when your team still has needs at the OL position. I question the selection

Draft Grade: B -
Overall a solid draft for the Chicago Bears. They added Gabe Carimi who was a nice 1st round steal for them and they did not have to trade up for him (sorry Ravens). Although I don't think Carimi will ever be a star RT, he is still very solid. Paea can start for them right away and if he can stay healthy will be very nice. The rest of the draft leaves question marks, and they still need help on the offensive line