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Chicago Bears: Cedric Benson Named Biggest Draft Bust of All-Time

By Dan Schmelzer

Nov 27, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; A detailed view of the Chicago Bears helmet during the first half against the Tennessee Titans at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 27, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; A detailed view of the Chicago Bears helmet during the first half against the Tennessee Titans at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports /
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Cedric Benson is the Chicago Bears biggest draft bust of all-time.

The Chicago Bears do not exactly have a strong history of selecting players in the NFL Draft. While Ryan Pace seemed to nail most of his selections last year, his predecessors were not as lucky. Or maybe they just weren’t competent at their jobs.

ESPN just put together a list of the biggest NFL Draft bust for all 32 teams. Jeff Dickerson had the honor of picking the worst of the worst for the Bears are he landed on 2005 4th overall selection Cedric Benson.

"The Bears wanted Benson to replace veteran tailback Thomas Jones, but Benson struggled in the lead role in 2007, rushing for only 674 yards (3.4 yards per carry) and four touchdowns. To be fair, Benson has plenty of company.The Bears also whiffed on first-round picks Curtis Enis, Cade McNown, David Terrell, Michael Haynes, Chris Williams, Gabe Carimi and Shea McClellin — and that’s just since 1998! The jury is also out on Kyle Fuller and Kevin White, but both are trending in the wrong direction. It’s no wonder the Bears have reached the playoffs only five times since Mike Ditka left in 1992."

Benson was a star running back at Texas in college, showing incredible power and quickness with the ball in his hands. He seemed like a safe pick at the time and a guy who would lead the Bears offense for many years. Unfortunately, Benson never got his career going in Chicago and quickly looked like a bust.

Benson just did not have the speed to compete at a high level in the NFL. He did carve out a decent career with the Cincinnati Bengals after leaving Chicago, becoming their primary back for five years.

The list of names that Dickerson was able to put out as competition to Benson was embarrassing. I struggle to believe that any NFL team has had as many consistent early-round busts as the Bears through that era. Their play on the field reflected the poor drafting by their front office at the time.

However, the past is the past. It is time to look forward with the Chicago Bears. The 3-13 2016 season was not ideal, but this team has some interesting young talent in place.

Next: Logical Draft Targets for Bears at Each Position

If Pace can repeat his strong draft performance from last year later this month, they will be on the right track. However, if he evaluates talent like Mark Hatley, Jerry Angelo and Phil Emery, the team will be in trouble.

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