Chicago Bears: 3 rookies who could immensely alter training camp
By Ryan Heckman
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Wide Receiver Javon Wims
Before I dive into Javon Wims, let me just say that I understand the top two or three wide receivers should be pretty much set. Allen Robinson and Taylor Gabriel will likely start on the outside with rookie Anthony Miller being the go-to slot threat.
But, outside of those three, the competition is wide open. Will fourth-year pro Kevin White finally bust loose? Does Josh Bellamy prove he is more than just a special teams addition? How about Bennie Fowler? The Bears have a lot of options to fill out the bottom half of their wide receiver group.
Coming out of Georgia, the 6-foot-4 monstrous frame of Wims did nothing but make plays — big plays, folks.
https://twitter.com/garunsthisstate/status/943560559206813697
Many times, after the draft, you hear a lot of “coach speak” regarding the selections made. Pace and Nagy, though, weren’t kidding when they agreed that there was no way Wims should have been available in the seventh round.
Let’s just put this in perspective. You have the best wide receiver on a team who found themselves in the National Championship and put up one of the best fights against a loaded Alabama team we’ve ever seen — and he fell to the seventh round?
javon wims is a player to watch tonight. i think he's gonna have a nice draft season. shrine game player. pic.twitter.com/uBTJhQmcHR
— charles (“you look good” - andy reid) mcdonald (@FourVerts) January 8, 2018
Wims’ stat line from a year ago won’t blow you away, but if that’s all you’re looking at, you’re missing the point. Wims is coming from a team that had plenty of weapons on offense. Georgia had to give a lot of touches to a lot of players, and that mainly came through the run game with Nick Chubb and Sony Michel.
When it came to the passing game, though, Wims was the clear-cut number one option. If he comes out and shows up in camp with the same type of playmaking ability we saw as a Bulldog, I see no reason why he couldn’t climb up the depth chart in a hurry.
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With Robinson, Gabriel and Miller, the Bears don’t have that big-bodied wideout that a lot of teams boast. Obviously, in Nagy’s offense, you don’t necessarily have to have that type of receiver. But, Wims could give the Bears yet another aspect of this offense for opposing defenses to worry about if he puts on a rock-solid performance throughout camp.
Believe me when I say this: Fans would be thrilled to see a guy firmly step ahead of both White and Bellamy in that pecking order. If the Bears get more of a sure thing in Wims, everybody wins.