Chicago Bears Draft: Reasoning behind every 2019 draft pick

What in the world is Ryan Pace thinking drafting another wide receiver? The Bears already have Allen Robinson, Anthony Miller, Taylor Gabriel, Javon Wims and Cordarrelle Patterson on the roster.

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Before I get too in-depth, let’s just get this out of the way: Ridley was by far and away the best player on the board for Pace. He was able to get the best route-runner in the entire wide receiver class as a fourth-round pick. Ridley is as polished a route runner as anybody in the 2019 group, and it’s blatantly obvious when you watch his film. The value was too insane to pass up.

But, here’s the why behind the what.

It’s true, Miller played almost his entire rookie year on one arm. He’s said so himself. Now, recovering from offseason shoulder surgery, the Bears are doing everything possible to make sure they have a backup plan. In the event Miller isn’t ready to go come September, or re-aggravates the injury, they have insurance.

Now, Ridley may be more than just “insurance” at this point. He’s going to play, and he’s going to make an impact. Ridley, the younger brother of Atlanta Falcons wideout Calvin Ridley, has a lot of similarities when you look at the two. (Calvin) Ridley is also an extremely precise route runner, and (Riley) Ridley is right there as well.

Pace knows that his defense is as good as it gets, and he’s taken an opportunity to give Matt Nagy as many weapons, at his disposal, as he possibly can. Ridley was an absolute steal in the fourth round, and makes a lot of sense for the Bears.