Chicago Bears 2020 NFL Mock Draft: Midseason Edition

5. Round Five, Pick 144: LB Shaquille Quarterman, Miami

Inside linebacker is a need that’s currently hard to project for the Bears. Roquan Smith is under contract until at least 2021 while Danny Trevathan and Nick Kwiatkoski are both set to be free agents after the 2019 season. Essentially, this means the Bears will have some work to do regarding their inside linebacker room. The ideal scenario would be resigning both Trevathan and Kwiatkoski but if not, the Bears will need to replace both with players that fit Chuck Pagano’s system.

Shaquille Quarterman is a guy who seems to fit what the Bears are building on defense under Pagano for a number of reasons. He’s physical when it comes to bringing down ball carriers and excels when asked to blitz. Another quality to like about Quarterman’s game is the high motor he plays with. He’s rarely seen taking plays off and has proved to be very durable throughout his college career playing in a total of 49 games.

As of right now, one of the big question marks that could possibly hinder where Quarterman gets drafted is what his role at the next level will be. Is he a guy who can be a three-down starter at the next level or a guy who will merely be a situational player?In the early stages of his career, he will likely end up being a guy who is a situational player. However, if he shows enough improvement, he could quickly turn into a guy who could compete for a starting role at some point down the road.