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Chicago Bears: 2020 NFL Draft prospects to watch at Shrine Bowl

By William Martin

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - OCTOBER 05: Dele Harding #9 of the Illinois Fighting Illini carries the ball for a touchdown after an inception against the Minnesota Gophers during the first quarter of the game at TCF Bank Stadium on October 5, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - OCTOBER 05: Dele Harding #9 of the Illinois Fighting Illini carries the ball for a touchdown after an inception against the Minnesota Gophers during the first quarter of the game at TCF Bank Stadium on October 5, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /
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Khaleke Hudson, Lavert Hill, Chicago Bears
(Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

The strongest side of the ball shouldn’t necessarily require the most attention, but evaluating your roster is important, and tinkering and tailoring it is key for sustaining success.

There are a handful of defensive players on both rosters that have caught my eye.

Starting up front, Michael Divinity Jr. is not only a national champion, but he’s a legit NFL prospect. LSU used him in a variety of ways (hand in the dirt, coverage, etc.) so there’s a possibility that he could develop into something more than a “jack of all trades” player at the next level if he is surrounded by the proper coaching staff.

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Shaq Quarterman was a player who could have declared last season, but decided to stay when Manny Diaz turned down the Temple job to remain at Miami. Shaq is a very physical inside linebacker, who has been a rather effective blitzer when his number is called. His coverage abilities will determine how good of a defender he can be in the NFL.

Dele Harding had one heck of a year for the Fighting Illini. His performance in the upset over the Wisconsin Badgers was arguably his best as he was tasked with stopping stud running back Jonathan Taylor. He was second in the nation in tackles (12.3) and picked off three passes. His prior special teams experience could be valuable at the next level. But whether he’s best suited as an inside or outside linebacker is sort of up in the air.

In the secondary, there was a time when I thought Lavert Hill would be a legit Day One prospect this year, but it appeared that he may have taken something of a step back last Fall. He is a very experienced man coverage cornerback and has a good feel when it comes to locating the ball. With Prince Amukamara’s contract situation coming up soon, finding someone to take his spot could be a high priority (the Bears have left Prince in a lot of man-to-man situations in zone schemes over the last couple of years).

I am a fan of Nevelle Clark. His ball skills are wacky (28 pass breakups, four picks in last two seasons at UCF) and out of all the top pure ball skill corners in this class, he has to be up there with the best of them.

Lastly, we have another Michigan defensive back, Khaleke Hudson. Even though Hudson recently accepted a Senior Bowl invite, he just wants to show off every facet of his versatile skill set that he has. He functioned as a hybrid defender as the “Viper” in Don Brown’s defense. The guy who can do just about everything and everything you ask him to do: linebacker, slot corner, strong safety, and even big slot corner.

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