Chicago Bears draft profile: Marcus Davenport, edge rusher

(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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Outlook

Make no mistake about it, Marcus Davenport has a lot of growing to do. And though he would fill the Bears’ need for an edge rusher early on, it’s fair to wonder if he’s worth a pick as high as No. 8 overall.

That said, doesn’t Davenport feel exactly the kind of prospect that Ryan Pace loves in the first round of the draft?

He has excellent physical tools that give him tremendous upside as a player. He produced at a high level, albeit against lesser competition. And he carries that aura of rawness — that feeling that he hasn’t even scratched the surface yet — that seems to draw Pace like a moth to the flame.

Without a doubt, he has the potential to be better than any pass rusher on this team currently, save maybe Floyd only. And if he takes to professional coaching, he could make a potentially huge impact as a third-down pass rusher as a rookie.

From there, it would just a matter of how quickly he expanded his repertoire and how well he executed his other responsibilities.

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On one hand, I think shooting for Davenport in the top 10 would be a far greater reach than taking Floyd at No. 9 in 2016 was.

And yet, if it worked out and Floyd and Davenport formed one of the more hellacious young edge rushing duos in the league, I doubt anyone will remember that.