Chicago Bears Should Target Injured Cornerback Sidney Jones in 2017 NFL Draft
The Chicago Bears should look to buy low on injured cornerback Sidney Jones in the 2017 NFL Draft.
It is not a secret. The Chicago Bears have one of the worst defensive back situations in then entire NFL. Free agent signings Quintin Demps and Prince Amukamara will help in the short-term, but the Bears should undoubtedly be looking at cornerbacks and safeties in the 2017 NFL Draft. A recent injury may allow for a nice buy-low option for the Bears at cornerback.
Going into Saturday, Sidney Jones was a first-round cornerback prospect. He is an athletic and instinctive corner who shows incredibly natural ball skills. Jones can play a variety of defensive schemes and has massive upside at the next level.
Unfortunately, at the University of Washington Pro Day, Jones was carted off of the field with an apparent left leg injury. While nothing has been made official yet, Jones’ injury appears to be serious.
Getting a bunch of texts from scouts at UW & it sounds like Sidney Jones suffered a significant lower leg injury. Feel terrible for him.
— Daniel Jeremiah (@MoveTheSticks) March 11, 2017
Just had NFL source (in attendance at Washington pro day) text:
— Eric Edholm (@Eric_Edholm) March 11, 2017
"It's a torn Achilles" he was told for CB Sidney Jones. As feared.
If these reports are correct, Jones is going to plummet down NFL draft boards. A torn Achilles would likely force Jones to miss his entire rookie season. Tough break for a guy who was about to make his NFL dreams come true. However, his career is far from over. At only 21-years-old, Jones has a bright career in football ahead of him.
With today’s technology, athletes can completely recover from injuries like this. Jones will likely be fully healthy and ready to compete for the 2018 season. This obviously hurts his draft stock, but there could be some tremendous value here for a team like the Chicago Bears.
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No matter what they do in the draft, the Bears are not going to be a competitive team in 2017. If Mike Glennon is better as a starting quarterback than we all expect, they could fight their way to respectability, but they are not anything close to Super Bowl contenders in any stretch of the imagination.
Knowing this, the Bears should take a shot on an injured Sidney Jones. A near first round lock before the injury, Jones will now likely slide into Day Three of the 2017 NFL Draft. The Bears hold the fourth and tenth selections in the fourth-round of the draft (111th and 117th overall respectively). If Jones is available in that range, Ryan Pace and company would be wise to jump on this buy-low opportunity.
Taking a risk on an injured player is always tough, but Jones has much more upside than any other prospect in that range. He is a possible shut-down cornerback in the making with his only real negative being the injury. If the Bears check out Jones
If the Bears check out Jones and feel that he will eventually make a full recovery, snagging him in the fourth round would be a brilliant move. All they would be missing out on is his rookie season where they will not be competitive anyway.
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In Jones, the Bears could fill a significant long-term for an incredibly cheap cost. This is the exact kind of low-risk, high reward moves that they should be making.