Chicago Bears: Taquan Mizzell adds more explosive potential to offense

With their offense in desperate need of playmakers, the Chicago Bears just picked up an intriguing one in Taquan Mizzell.

Those of us who thought that Jeremy Langford hadn’t done enough to keep a roster spot with the Chicago Bears got validation on Sunday when the team released him after two seasons. His unavailability for the last season, as well as disappointing production on the field, finally spelled doom for the former third-round pick.

Plus, the Bears may also have found a player that could very well be what they wished Langford could have been.

Just prior to cutting Langford on Sunday, the Bears claimed former Virginia running back Taquan Mizzell off waivers from the Baltimore Ravens in addition to grabbing wide receiver Tre McBride from the Tennessee Titans and long-snapper Andrew DePaula from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Mizzell joins a running back group that includes Jordan Howard, Tarik Cohen, and Benny Cunningham.

At first glance, it certainly looks like the Bears might have stolen a quality player from the Ravens. In the end, he fell victim to a numbers game as the Ravens chose to keep only three running backs. That said, they reportedly hoped he would clear waivers so that they could stash him on the practice squad. Unfortunately for them, the Chicago Bears never gave them a chance.

At 5’10”, 185 pounds, Mizzell adds another scat back-type player alongside Cohen and Cunningham. Some might simply see this and wonder what the Bears plan to do with two undersized running backs. I vote that we should see this more for what it is: the Chicago Bears are stockpiling versatile, explosive players at their running back position. And that’s only going to help their enigmatic offense.

Quite a “Catch” for Bears

Like Cohen, Mizzell has shown plenty of ability to run the ball out of the backfield despite his stature. In fact, he led the Ravens this preseason in rushing yards and also racked up 1,500 yards on the ground last season with Virginia. Plus, if you assume smaller backs can’t run the football effectively based on appearance alone, you haven’t been paying attention.

However, also like Cohen (perhaps even more so), Mizzell is lethal as a pass-catcher. And that, more so than anything, could earn him some looks in the Bears’ offense eventually.

Naturally, Mizzell can catch the ball out of the backfield as a third-down back might be expected to. This route right here looks just like one I bookmarked for Cohen in college. Note the amount of “broken-ankleness” on this option route adjustment.

Needless to say, I approve of this.

But that’s not all. This man splits out wide and runs legitimate receiver routes. Like “let me line up at the top of your screen and beat my man on a back-shoulder fade” routes…

And don’t forget about “smooth out of my break like a wide receiver” routes too.

Mizzell was so good as a receiver in college that he landed on the Biletnikoff Award watch list before the 2016 season. For those unfamiliar with that award, it is given to the most outstanding receiver in college football each year.

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As has been made clear by now, Mizzell is a running back, not a wide receiver. Wow.

In fact, could Mizzell possibly represent the Bears’ version of Tyreek Hill even more so than Cohen?

With the Bears’ desperate needs at the wide receiver position following Cameron Meredith’s injury, they may have quietly found an interesting piece.

Of course, if we know one thing, it’s that no one has any idea what John Fox’s plans are about anything.

It could happen that Mizzell doesn’t pan out with the Bears at all and doesn’t last in the Windy City.

On the other hand, if he turns out to be even close to the kind of player Hill looks to be for the Chiefs, the Bears will be an intriguing player on their hands!

Next: How wide reciver Tre McBride might fit with Bears

For right now, the idea of Taquan Mizzell working his way onto the field for the Chicago Bears should intrigue fans. If nothing else, I give Ryan Pace a lot of credit for making this move and trying to diversify an offense that badly needs playmakers.