There’s nothing Ryan Poles could have said about Jalen Carter on Thursday night that would have been more telling than his actions — passing on the Georgia defensive tackle in the first round.
The Chicago Bears general manager declined to talk about Carter, whom the Philadelphia Eagles selected at No. 9 with the pick Poles traded to them. Poles also didn’t say he had a plan to start rebuilding the interior of the defensive line the next night.
That’s what the Bears began Friday, choosing Florida’s Gervon Dexter in Round 2 at No. 53 and South Carolina’s Zacch Pickens to begin Round 3 at No. 64. In between, the Bears traded up five spots to No. 56 to add Miami cornerback Tyrique Stevenson.
Carter might go on to a career full of accolades in Philadelphia. Some scouts considered him the best player on tape in the draft. You can make a case the defending NFC champions and Eagles GM Howie Roseman are shrewd operators, but their locker room has a culture on an entirely different level than the Bears’ with a host of veterans and former college teammates who can aid Carter.
Picking Tennessee offensive tackle Darnell Wright, who figures to get a first crack at right tackle, can be viewed as a risk-averse move at No. 10, a player with an established floor who the organization believes has high upside. The Bears raved about Wright being a tone-setter and having some nastiness to his game while being a quick learner, pluses for offensive line coach Chris Morgan.
Wright is a fit for the outside-zone scheme because of his athletic ability and provides help for quarterback Justin Fields, a clear franchise initiative this offseason. Those are all good things, but he does nothing to help a run defense that was 31st in the NFL (157.3 yards per game), allowing a team-record 2,674 yards, or a pass rush that was 32nd with only 20 sacks.
That’s where the focus turned on Day 2 to beef up a defensive front that has more placeholders than anything. Enter Dexter and Pickens, who should compete for playing time immediately and improve the pass rush and run defense.
The Stevenson pick is intriguing from the standpoint the Bears gave the Jacksonville Jaguars their fifth-round pick at No. 136 to move up only five spots and get Stevenson, a pretty high price. That signals the Bears were fearful someone was about to grab him and lets you know he will be put in a position to battle for a starting role immediately.
But back to the defensive line, on which the Bears did not get a lot done in free agency. The biggest additions in March were end DeMarcus Walker and nose tackle Andrew Billings.
Walker is on his fourth team coming off a career-high 7½ sacks for the Tennessee Titans last season as a situational player, getting 37% of the playing time. Billings is also on his fourth team and logged 52% of the playing time for the Las Vegas Raiders last season, more of a regular player considering he’s a two-down defender.
Billings could be a sneaky-good addition and figures to be the nose tackle in the base scheme. That leaves Dexter and Pickens opportunities to compete for playing time with veteran Justin Jones. Both are high-end trait prospects from the SEC, and Poles and his staff essentially are telling the coaching staff: “Here are a couple of players with a ton of physical tools. Make them into reliable pro players with upside.”
Dexter and Pickens went on Day 2 because they’re splash players — guys with juice off the snap. They make highlight moves, and then you keep watching tape and you’re waiting and waiting to see the next one. It’s not consistent football. At the core, this is what the draft is when you get out of Round 1. Teams are drafting players with traits, upside and experience in major programs and trying to see who develops.
If the Bears can turn one or both of these tackles into consistent players, Day 2 can be viewed as a success and there won’t be worries about what Carter is doing in Philadelphia, especially if Wright is a foundational piece for the offensive line. Poles wants Dexter and Pickens to be interchangeable, calling them “hybrid” defensive tackles.
When the opening wave of free agency concluded and the Bears’ big signings were linebackers Tremaine Edmunds and T.J. Edwards and guard Nate Davis, I asked Poles how realistic it was to make major improvements to the defensive line — tackles and edge rushers. It was a glaring area. He said with more to come in free agency and the draft, there was reason for confidence. But …
“There are going to be some weak spots on our roster,” Poles said on March 16. “We can’t fix everything, but we are going to stay flexible to do the best we can to get better.”
This is offered as a reminder a weak spot remains at defensive end, a position the Bears didn’t address with any of their 10 draft picks. Maybe Poles was eyeing a potential trade up early in Round 2 that didn’t materialize. Three of the first seven picks in the round were traded. Edge rushers Derick Hall (Auburn), Isaiah Foskey (Notre Dame) and B.J. Ojulari (LSU) were selected in a span of five picks from Nos. 37 to 41.
If Walker is the starter at one end, pick among Trevis Gipson, Dominique Robinson, Rasheem Green and Terrell Lewis for the other. Maybe they will sign a veteran to a one-year deal in the coming weeks. But the rookie tackles should aid the pass rush.
“I think we got better,” Poles said. “This rotation of guys on the inside, to penetrate but also to dent the pocket and create shorter edges on the outside for our D-ends, should help them. We’re younger, more athletic, faster. Close to burst is going to be way better. We’re heading in the right direction. We’ve got to see it in action and let it play out.”
It’s instructive to remember Poles said six weeks ago there would be holes on the roster when the season begins. The Bears needed a cornerback and got one in Stevenson, who is physical and can play press man and zone coverage. They took a shot on two tackles, and Matt Eberflus has called the three-technique the engine that makes his defense go.
It has been a long while since the Bears really hit on defensive linemen in the draft. Nose tackle Eddie Goldman, a second-rounder in 2015, was very good through his rookie contract. Turning traits and athletic skill into production would be a big step for Poles and Eberflus.
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