Chicago Bears Mock Draft: Combine Week edition

It’s going to be a real challenge to replace such a beloved player on the Chicago Bears.

Kyle Long had a weary and often challenging seven-year career in Chicago, and it was a shame to see him play until he finally broke down. No one ever wants to see that, but he gave the team and the city every last ounce he could, and that’s just one of the many reasons why we’ll miss seeing him play.

So asking Clemson’s John Simpson to step in and take over at right guard might be a tall task of sorts. Now, yes, I am well aware Simpson started two years at left guard, but hold that thought for a moment.

Simpson is a fine run blocker, which would certainly help for the Bears’ lackluster run attack over the last couple of years. The Athletic’s Dane Brugler pointed out recently that “His intelligence and genuine intangibles are both strong selling points and made him a steadying presence on the interior of Clemson’s line and in the locker room”.

When you consider the success that Clemson had over the last few years in the college football landscape, you have to consider lumping Simpson in with what he was able to contribute to the cause.

Now from what I’ve read and seen, lots of draftniks have nitpicked him for his lack of athleticism. But tying this back to the point about all of his college snaps coming at left guard, I think the Bears can find a way to counteract the athleticism concerns.

If your quarterback is right-handed (and in this example, Trubisky is right-handed), you probably want a more athletic left guard watching over his blindside, right? Well, the Bears do indeed have something of an athletic left guard in James Daniels.

With how solid of a road grader Simpson is, the right side of the line might be a better fit for him in Chicago than it might be elsewhere. The Bears can probably run better off the right side with Simpson than if he was playing the left side.

While most of what I’m pointing out here is probably just conjecture, it’s not unrealistic. Instead of reshuffling the interior of the offensive line like they did with Daniels and Cody Whitehair at the start of last season, they can try bypassing that mess and let Simpson slide in on the right side.