Chicago Bears: Complete 7-round mock draft 2.0

Pick made by Khari Thompson @kdthompson5

There are also a number of receivers one could potentially take here. With the glut of Round 3-4 receivers in the mix, someone’s bound to fall. And from that standpoint, maybe a Simmie Cobbs, Equanimeous St. Brown or Keke Coutee (the last two are less likely) could slip to the Chicago Bears in Round 5.

But they can also address their running back position in the middle rounds as they have every season since Ryan Pace arrived. With Jordan Howard’s standing with the new coaching staff still up in the air, Ballage could intrigue them.

Specifically, Ballage is, in many respects, everything that Howard is not from a stylistic perspective.

He is raw in areas where Howard is typically good, like showing patience on runs, seeing the field well and hitting holes with conviction.

But he excels in aspects that Howard simply doesn’t or can’t, like catching the football, making people miss in the open field and hitting the home run ball.

With seasoning, Ballage could potentially be that matchup nightmare back that has become in vogue in the NFL.

He has the ability to catch the ball out of the backfield and line up as a receiver, like a much bigger Tarik Cohen. And his slippery moves in the open field give him a splash of Alvin Kamara-type quality.

Then, when he gets out on the run, he has the speed to take it the distance. As much as we love Howard here, he’s a bit limited in the long speed department.

Even if the Chicago Bears don’t trade Howard this year, a guy like Ballage makes their running back group that much stronger. I’m sure Nagy won’t say no to another chess piece to move around, anyway.

And if the Bears do want to let Howard go sooner or later, Ballage has the size and upside to be an every-down back. If they can bring him along slowly at first, all the better for him.